Keeping Him Close
by Koibitotedare
Summary: If you cannot keep your lover as close to you as possible then you must become his enemy to protect them. After Izaya is attacked Shizuo will no longer take them being apart and steps in to care for his lover. However the persistant Ex-Yakuza member Shirozake isn't going to just let the informant live. Will Shizuo be able to protect the one he loves or will he loose everything?
1. Into the open

Keeping Him Close

**Important Information: Kida doesn't know that Mikado is the leader of Dollars and vise versa.**

_If you can't constantly keep your lover by your side then become their enemy._

Grinning, Izaya pulled on his trademark jacket, slipped on his shoes, and left his apartment while grabbing his keys. Still beaming, as he used the elevator to get to the bottom, he placed his hands inside his jacket pockets. Upon stepping into the lobby he could see large, fluffy, white flakes of snow falling idly from the sky. Despite hating the cold that the snow brought with it, Izaya was happy to be out in the weather. He had a meeting as Nakura-san tonight. He was going with the typical kidnap and rescue routine that had won him so many wonderful reactions. The responses this girl would give him would be entertaining at the least, and he couldn't wait to see them. He couldn't wait for the look of confusion to cross her face only to be followed by the sweet look of betrayal. He skipped to his location then sat at the rooftop waiting for his package to be delivered.

The rumble of the motorcycle was never heard but the sound of a horse caught Izaya's attention. He moved to a higher spot on the building to stay out of sight for the first meeting. He nearly slipped on some ice that had formed but regained his footing and rubbed his hands together trying to warm them. He frowned as the motorcycle's neighing passed without stopping at the building. Izaya pulled out his phone and sent a text to Celty. _[Where's my package?]_ He asked. The answer was swift and harsh for the dullahan, _[I'm in no mood for your games. She's at home.]_ Grinding his teeth together Izaya smashed the buttons on his cell phone and sent the message. _[That wasn't your job and now you've ruined my evening.]_

_[And you've ruined mine.]_

Izaya growled and jumped down from his spot, how was he supposed to get his daily dose of his beloved humans if his messenger decided to bail on him? He snarled as he nearly fell in the snow and he turned on his heel freezing in his spot, when he saw the two built men standing behind him. They were ex-Yakuza members that looked as if they were out for blood.

"What can I do for you gentlemen today?" Izaya asked with his trademark smirk and pulling his posture up to be something that was more appropriate. A look was shared between them and both pulled out guns. Izaya retaliated by pulling out his knife, he was, however, a fraction of a second late. The ex-members both shot unwilling to wait for words to be spoken. Izaya was fast, he couldn't fight on par with Shizuo if he wasn't, but even he couldn't dodge a bullet from five feet away, let alone two of them. He felt the cold, snowy, rooftop before he felt the pain in his stomach and right shoulder.

"You're a very hard man to track down." The first said as they both holstered their guns that were kept noiseless by the large silencing barrels screwed onto the ends.

"If you would _really_ like to do something for us you can lay there like a good boy and die." The other said and roughly patted his cold cheek, and just as quickly as they had come they were gone. Izaya attempted to move his right arm, but winced, letting out a silent scream as the whole arm pulsated in agony. He grit his teeth and fought the fuzzy, black haze that was already working its way into his vision, and while using his left arm only, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket with numb fingers. He barely made out the characters of Celty's name before he clicked, loosing most of his watery vision. By the time he found his first letter on his keyboard, his vision was fading and it seemed as if the building was spinning from underneath him. He tried to text, I need you to come get me, but he was unsure of the buttons he was pressing. He was also barely aware that he had even pressed the send button on the phone as his left arm fell to the frozen rooftop. He looked up to see the grey sky and blinked as a snowflake landed in the center of his eyes bringing a sharp pain as it melted. He blinked again and the water flowed out of his eye and ran down his cheek. His fingers twitched in an effort to wipe it away, but he merely felt the sticky pool of cooling blood from beneath him. His phone buzzed a moment later. Pressing the open button seemed to be too much effort and he settled for looking at his phone, where the screen was lit up saying he had a new message. His nose felt strange and numb on his face, the water that was on his eyelashes was already freezing into ice crystals. Another twitch of the fingers told him that the blood farthest from him was already freezing to the ground, collecting the snowflakes and preserving their shape as it did. A callous wind blew and he shivered once, cursing the snow and the cold air it brought with it as his vision tunneled. The world vaulted forward taking Izaya's stomach with him, with a surprising amount of strength he turned on his side, and vomited. The world began somersaulting and Izaya closed his eyes to get away from the nauseous sensation unaware that as his consciousness was rapidly diminishing and the cold didn't seem to matter as much anymore.

_UragirinoyuuyakeUragirinoyuu yakeUragirinoyuuyakeUragirin oyuuyakeDRRR_

Shizuo sighed for what seemed to be the 80th time that night. He'd been pissed with a certain flea when he flung a car down the street. He was reaching for the stop sign next to him when a slight tingle in his arm made him realized that he had just thrown his shoulder out and dislocated it. He knew that he should go to Shinra, because _he_ sure as hell didn't know how to put a shoulder back into place, however ruining his friend's first official date night with Celty seemed like a bad idea. However, if he didn't go then he couldn't do his job and he could be facing termination at that point, and he just _couldn't_ do that to Kasuka again. With his 81st sigh, Shizuo left for Shinra's.

Trying to dull his feelings of guilt, Shizuo lightly knocked on the door to the apartment. To his surprise Celty answered almost immediately. She seemed nervous as she typed on her phone while shifting her weight back and forth. She erased the message several times, making Shizuo believe she was angry, before finally showing it to him; he blinked at the words on the screen. _[If you're here to hurt him you'll have to leave and come back when he's better.]_ Shizuo blinked slightly confused then gestured to his arm.

"I'm really not sure what you're talking about, I threw a car today and I just need-" He was interrupted as the phone was thrust into his face. He pushed her hand back so he could make out the letters. _[You threw a _car_?! Why can't you men just _takecare_ of yourselves?]_ She grabbed him by his good arm and hauled him over to the long couch in the living room with surprising strength. She pointed a stern finger at him giving him a silent warning that told him to stay put "or else." Shizuo nodded as she walked off into a side room. He sat rubbing his injured arm and wondering what she meant when she said that he would have to wait to hurt someone. Did that mean that someone was in this building that he wanted to hurt? Did that mean Izaya was here? The nervous churning in his stomach that was normally associated with Izaya's name started up at the thought of him. Shinra's voice was curious when he spoke from the other room, loud enough that Shizuo could hear everything he was saying.

"He only threw a car? Well that's fine then I'll look at it, will you stay with this guy for me?" Shinra's voice flowed smoothly into the room Shizuo was currently occupying. Shizuo noticed Celty moving to the bed while Shinra came out smiling and wiping his slightly bloody hands on a sanitizing rag.

"Sorry to ruin your date night." Shizuo apologized as Shinra bent to look at his arm.

"It was ruined long before you got here." Shinra answered while gently probing the area, "There were a lot of unusual attacks in the underground today. My whole day was ruined at eight this morning." Shinra answered with a shrug.

"I see."

"This might sting a bit." Shinra warned then popped the blondes arm back into place.

"Thanks." Shizuo grumbled as he rotated the arm. They heard a loud bang followed by furious typing and a whiny voice.

"Ahhh not again!" Shinra groaned as Izaya slowly made his way out of the room with his knife brandished at Celty.

"Izaya-kun! You really need to rest!" Shinra cautioned as Izaya took another step out of the room. He was clutching at his stomach with his right hand and the left held the knife. He was slightly bent over but the look in his eye said that he would cut Celty if she tried anything to stop him, even if he was panting and using the wall as a support. Shizuo sighed and stood, dusting his pants off as he did.

"Ahh Shizuo-Kun please don't! He's already hurt!" Shinra pleaded as the white bandages around Izaya's middle slowly turned red again.

"You stupid Flea." Shizuo said his voice surprisingly soft, "Go to bed and _sleep_." Shizuo grabbed Izaya's left wrist lightly and gently squeezed it sending the knife clattering to the floor. Shizuo wrapped his arm around Izaya's shoulders then bent and wrapped the other underneath the Louses knees and gently picked him up. To both Celty and Shinra's shock, Izaya merely curled into Shizuo wedging his face into the space between the blonde's arm and chest.

"Shi-Shizu-Chan." Izaya's voice was far too soft for Shizuo's liking, so he shushed the brunette.

"Shut up and sleep, doctors orders." Shizuo said as he placed the 23 year old in bed as if he were a toddler again, and brought the covers to his chin.

"I have to go to work Shizu-Chan." Izaya groaned.

"Bull, go to bed." Shizuo commanded as he placed a hand on the sick mans shoulder keeping him in bed.

"What exactly was _that_?" Shinra questioned and instantly a blush formed over Shizuo's cheeks as he remembered where he was.

"Aww is Shizu-Chan embarrassed?" Izaya teased.

"Can it, Louse." Shizuo grumbled.

"I've never seen you be civil to him before, what gives?" Shinra asked while giving Shizuo a once over. Millions of excuses whirled through Shizuo's mind but none of them very good.

"Er…opposite day?" He offered earning a glare and crossed arms from Shinra.

"I think these two, of all people, deserve to know Shizu-Chan." Izaya's voice popped into the air again. Shizuo stared into the ruby eyes until they reached a silent agreement.

"We can't do this anymore Izaya." Shizuo said earning a worried look from Izaya, "I don't care if you want it or not but we're doing this my way from now on." The worried look left only to be placed with an annoyed one, but before Izaya could retaliate Shinra spoke up again.

"And what does _that_ mean?" Shizuo sighed and sat on the bed next to Izaya.

"Truthfully, we've never hated each other as much as we've portrayed." Shizuo started.

"You stated that you hated him from the moment you set eyes on him, I was _there_." Shinra stated with a disbelieving look in his eyes.

"I guess we were believable! Ne Shizu-Chan~" Izaya chirped.

"I thought I told you to shut up and sleep." Shizuo sighed, "Are you going to make me read you a bedtime story?" Izaya wrapped his arms around Shizuo's waist and nudged his face into the blondes legs, earning a light sigh from the man.

"No." Came the muffled reply.

"So damn clingy." Shizuo grumbled but slid and arm around Izaya's shoulders. _[How long?]_ Shizuo stared at the screen in front of him wondering what he should reveal and leave secret.

"Middle school." Izaya answered swiftly as he read the screen one eye poking out from his dark hair. The Dullahan took her phone back and erased the message prepared to type again.  
"Then why is- Why would- Why are you hiding it then?" Shinra asked while scratching his head trying to figure out the puzzle.

"Have you ever heard of the saying keep your friends close, your enemy's closer, and your lover the closest?" Shizuo asked.

"Yes."

"And have you heard that if you can't keep your lover close enough then you must keep them as far away as possible to avoid them being targeted by your enemy?" Shizuo asked. The pieces began to fall into a pattern in front of Shinra's eyes.

_[But in middle school? Did either of you really have enemies that powerful?]_ Celty asked.

"Izaya started making enemies as fast he could." Shizuo mumbled while giving the brunettes shoulder a firm squeeze, "Middle school was fine, it was when we got into high school where things got sticky."

"I keep telling you I wouldn't be where I am now if I didn't start getting information then. I had rivals in middle school; they just weren't as bad as the ones at Raira." Izaya answered fighting off a yawn as he situated his head on Shizuo's lap.

"When you claimed that you hated him?" Shinra asked.

"Yes."

"So let me get this straight….in order to protect each other you pretended that you hated each other so they wouldn't use one of you in a hostage situation that would endanger the other?"

"That's about it…" Shizuo answered.

_[What did you mean when you said you were going with your plan Shizuo?] _

"Ahh, Izaya's plan was to keep us as far away as possible and mine was to keep us close…Now that he's been shot, _twice_, I refuse to go along with this any further. I'm keeping him as close as I can…I'll find the people that did this and I'll kill them." Shizuo spat.

_[Will you need help with anything?]_ Celty asked as she ignored the fact that Izaya was rubbing his nose on Shizuo's leg just to annoy the other.

"Well since we're going along with my plan now-"

"I don't think that's the best choice Shizu-chan…I have a lot of powerful enemies…" Izaya stated unable to fight off his yawn and a wince of pain, which sent Shinra into doctor mode.

"Visitation hours are over! I need to change his bandages and he needs rest." Shinra claimed while grabbing bandages from across the room. He kicked both Shizuo and Celty out of the room while he changed the bandages, much to both Shizuo and Izaya's annoyance.

_[Do you love him?]_ Celty asked as they stepped into the living room. The blush crossed Shizuo's face again.

"Of course, I've been with him since middle school…." Shizuo answered somewhat embarrassed.

_[Have you told him?]_

"He knows it."

_[You should tell him anyway, if you don't you might find out that he's really been looking for you to say it.]_

"What do you mean?"

_[He comes off as a strong and confident person, I'm sure you know this, but he's unsure about a lot of things. Not that his pride will let him admit that.]_

"Yes, we've discussed _that_ before…I'm still not sure I get what you mean."

_[You might find him gone one day because you never really showed your feelings to him.]_ Celty wrote. Shizuo shifted uncomfortably then changed the subject unable to justify that with an answer.

"So you're not angry?"

_[Of course not! I understand why you did what you did, but I think Shinra will be a little sore that you kept this from him…you guys were his only friends in high school.]_

"He still had you, he always had you."

_[But it's not the same. I'm a woman…He never really had anyone else to be a boy with…or to trust even. He's going to be upset that you kept it from him no matter your reasons. It's different that way, he needed friends to rely on and you were it.] _

"Yeah, I know…" Shizuo sighed while running his hand down his face, "I'll invite him for drinks or sushi sometime…you don't mind do you? I know today was supposed to be your first actual date." The headless woman shifted and Shizuo knew that if she had her head, she would be sporting a large and dark, red blush.

_[O-Of course not! Boy's night out right?!]_ Shizuo smiled at the woman's obvious embarrassment.

"Thanks Celty." At that moment Shinra exited the room with a slight scowl on his face.

"….So what's the full extent to his injuries?" Shizuo asked.

"He's got two bullet wounds, one on his right shoulder, and the other in his stomach. They're both healing quite nicely and if he would just stay put then they would heal faster. We found him in the snow half covered and freezing so he has a mild case of hypothermia. Not too serious if he's careful. He'll suffer from a fairly bad cold in the next couple of days but he'll get over it soon enough. The bullet wounds will have the longest recovery time. He'll have to take it easy and rest. I'm assuming you want to take him?"

"Yeah….and Shinra…when Izaya's healthy enough we should go out for sushi."

"…Don't try to butter me up…I'm still upset."

"I know you are…but you understand right?"

"…"

"Shinra?"

_[Shinra!]_ Celty placed a hand on her hip and Shinra shuddered.

"Yeah I get it…you can take him home now…Call me if you have any problems…" Shinra said while crossing his arms, "And…I'll think about going for sushi with you two…" Shizuo smiled and clapped the doctor on his shoulder.

"Get some rest and you really need to get around some guys instead of just Celty. You're acting like a woman." Shinra grunted but made no move to do or say anything other than a glare for the woman comment, so Shizuo collected Izaya and his pain medication and the anti-biotic from Shinra as well as a thorough lecture on how to properly use them from then underground doctor.

"Thanks Shinra, I really do appreciate it." And with that, Shizuo left.

_UragirinoyuuyakeUragirinoyuu yakeUragirinoyuuyakeUragirin oyuuyakeDRRR_

_**Alright I know I'm supposed to be writing Problematic Teens but I keep bouncing between these two stories so I'm just going to post this one as well. Hope you enjoyed!**  
_

_**Thanks for reading, **_

_**Koibito~**_


	2. I do declare

**Chapter 2**

"Shi-Shizu-chan! Knock it off! That hurts!"

"Well relax!"

"I'm trying but you aren't exactly being gentle! OW! Or predictable."

"Damn sorry, I haven't done this before."

"I can tell!" Izaya complained then released a breathy moan of pain, "Ugh, take it out! Stop! It hurts!"

"Hang on I'm going to try again, quit moving around and I can get it." Shizuo readjusted then aimed again.

"No! I can do it myself!"

"Don't be a baby!"

"No! Shizuo! NO!" Without listening to Izaya's complaints and protests Shizuo pressed one hand on Izaya's back holding him to the couch, then he plunged the needle back into the pale skin on the informants butt, this time hitting the vein where he promptly pressed on the syringe and allowed the pain medication to flow from the needle and into the mans body.

"There. I got it." Shizuo smirked and crossed his arms unable to keep the smug tone from his voice.

"Ugh, it _hurts_." Izaya complained earning an eye roll from Shizuo who pulled the informants boxers and pants back up.

"Get over it." Shizuo stated as he tossed the needle into the trash. Izaya turned onto his side and brought the covers up to his naked chest, pouting.

"Go away…" he grumbled.

"No, sit up I need to get your shirt on." Shizuo said as he held up the black pajama top.

"You could just get me my laptop so I can get to work." A slightly hopeful tone entered the informants tone as he looked with one eye at his boyfriend.

"I've already informed Namie, she's taking care of it."

"Namie is good, but even she can't run this whole city!" Izaya complained sitting up and wincing when he stretched his stomach just a bit too far.

"Shut up and sit still." Shizuo ordered as he forced the shirt over Izaya's head, "Stupid flea."

"Ugh, my head _hurts_." Izaya complained as he brought his arms carefully through the sleeves in the shirt, "Can't you give me something for that?"

"Can't mix your medications, you know that." Shizuo said as he helped Izaya button the shirt. Izaya ran his shaking fingers through his hair before using the crook of his arm to cough into it.

"I'll grab you some tea." Shizuo said as he rubbed the informants back. Izaya nodded and curled up on the couch feeling absolutely miserable. Shizuo grabbed the tea but by the time he had returned to the room, Izaya was sleeping with his neck at an awkward angle and still curled up. Shizuo sighed but straightened the flea's neck out, then proceeded to enjoy the tea himself while watching Izaya's television.

_ThisisalinebreakindisguiseTh isisalinebreakindisguiseThis isalinebreakindisguise _

It was hot, he suffering through an unbearable amount of sticky, gross, sweat, and his eyes felt too heavy. That was all Izaya needed to know that he would be in a bad mood as he woke up, that is, if he could ever get his eyes open from their closed position. It felt as if they were caked with sleep and gunk that had accumulated from his sickness while he slept, which of course led him to wonder just how long he had been out. He managed to untangle one of his arms from the sheets and rubbed sluggishly at his eyes trying to remove the sticky film. There was a light chuckle from the other side of the room.

"You look like a little kid when you do that." Izaya frowned at the light teasing finally managing to open one eye to see that it was still dark.

"Shut up. You'd do it too if _your_ eyes were glued shut from their own gunk!" Izaya snapped.

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Shizuo mumbled while he grabbed a towel that he placed on the nightstand after he had carried Izaya to bed last night. He nudged Izaya's hand out of the way and ran the damp cloth over the male's eyes freeing them from the gummy prison. Izaya struggled to untangle himself from the sheets and blankets but failed as he pulled his arm a bit too far and caused the unpleasant tingling sensation to return to his arm.

"Calm down."

"Oh, coming from _you_." Izaya growled earning a frown from Shizuo. The blonde didn't say a word but untangled the brunette and left the room. Izaya ran his good arm down his face and sighed, "Fuck." He mumbled knowing that he had just hit a sensitive nerve in his boyfriend's body. He ran his hand roughly through his hair making it stick up at odd ends and he stood slightly unbalanced, while gripping the nightstand next to the bed. First things first, he _had_ to ditch his stupid shirt; it was the current reason for his uncomfortable temperature. After carefully removing the article of clothing he slowly made his way into the hall and he took a look at the steps the led downstairs and sighed.

Feeling the energy already leaving him and the pain creeping up on him he merely sat down ignoring his pride and shoving it in a little corner in his brain. He began to scoot down the stairs saving him precious energy and causing him less pain than walking. Even if it literally killed him to go down these stairs, he had to talk to Shizuo and apologize. He found said blonde brooding on the couch, not that the blonde would ever call it brooding. He ignored the look of shock and sat on the couch leaning his head on Shizuo's shoulder, panting slightly, then gripped the vest the man wore.

"Sorry." Izaya mumbled with a blush on his face. He lightly kissed the slightly older male.

"I haven't been able to see you for three months…or kiss you, let alone hold your hand. I don't know how you talked me into staying away from each other." Shizuo said and he tilted Izaya's chin toward him and kissed him again this time turning into something more passionate.

"I missed you too." Izaya said breathlessly after he had pulled away.

"You're forgiven." Shizuo said as he wrapped his arm around Izaya's bare shoulders, "What happened to your shirt?"

"I took it off, I'm boiling." Izaya groaned, "I hate being sick!"

"Don't put yourself in a position where you could be shot."

"It's not like I planned that."

"…We need to talk about that…I was serious when I said I was going to track them down." Shizuo said as he fingered the bandages going around Izaya's shoulder.

"They were Ex-Yakuza members Shizu-Chan."

"I don't care."

"I do."

"…"

"They're dangerous. I've already been taken by surprise and I don't need you getting taken by surprise either."

"Oh? The Great Orihara Izaya admitting to being surprised by a mere human?" Shizuo teased earning a light glare from said Orihara.

"Shut up." Izaya commanded.

"Whatever you say, _babe_." Shizuo whispered in Izaya's ear earning a twitch of the eyebrow.

"I'm going to take a bath." Izaya grumbled somewhat embarrassed.

"Want help?"

"I'm perfectly capable of doing that on my own."

"I know that, I meant the stairs, but I can _help_ you with a bath if you ask real nice." Shizuo gave a wolf like grin as he pinned Izaya underneath him on the couch making a light rosy color spread across his cheeks.

"I don't think I'm exactly healthy enough for such…_activities_, but help up the stairs would be lovely." Izaya said with a wink. Shizuo grinned then shrugged. He grabbed Izaya's arms and hoisted him up so the young adult was on his back.

"I didn't mean I needed to be carried." Izaya mumbled but laid his head down on Shizuo's back as the blonde grabbed his legs and held them on either side of his body.

"You said you needed help, I'm giving it." Shizuo said, "Besides you're going to need those bandages off before you get in. I need to change them anyway."

"Fantastic." Izaya said dryly. He wrapped his arms around Shizuo's neck and sighed.

"What's wrong?" Shizuo asked softly making Izaya frown. When did Shizuo get so good at telling when he was upset?

"Nothing."

"Liar." Shizuo stated, "I know you too well."

"…" Izaya stayed silent trying to get his thoughts together.

"…What's wrong?"

"Just...thinking."

"About?"

"Pushy."

"I have to be with you."

"I don't know why they assaulted me…it makes my skin crawl to _not_ know something that someone somewhere _does_. I need to get back to work and find out everything I can before I they find out I'm still alive."

"You'll drive yourself into the ground."

"…I haven't before."

"Because I've stopped you."

"…Touché."

"I'll go out and see what I can find."

"What are you going to do Shizu-Chan? Walk into a middle of the Yakuza meeting and just _ask_ why their ex-members are out for my blood?" Izaya questioned.

"If that's what it takes."

"…You can- you can't just go _waltzing_ into the place like you own it! They'll _kill _you!"

"I'll deal with them. They won't have a chance to kill me." Shizuo said as he sat Izaya down on the toilet in the bathroom only to be slapped by said man. Shizuo blinked in shock as he touched his cheek, Izaya had been pissed at him before but not so much that his eyes blazed like a raging inferno that they were now, he'd never been slapped by Izaya before either.

"You dumbass! You protozoan! You-You amoeba! You will be _killed_! I know how strong you are but you can't take on all of them! _Especially_ since they know they can kill you by hitting you on the head or heart!" Izaya screamed. Shizuo blinked again, he had _never_ heard Izaya scream before.

"…" he couldn't think of anything to say.

"Damn it!" Izaya cursed as his eyes became a liquid inferno. Shizuo stared, still absentmindedly touching his cheek, while he watched Izaya struggle with not letting the tears fall over the rims of pink eyes.

"Izaya…"

"I won't let you _die_ Shizuo." Izaya said his voice raspy from yelling and holding back tears, "I won't. I wanted us to be as far away from each other as possible because I wanted you safe. I _can't_ handle it if …if you..." The day was full of firsts; Izaya had never been this emotional with him before.

"…" He still couldn't think of something to say.

"Say _something_ damn it!" Izaya yelled again as he brushed his knuckles under his eyelids. Shizuo, never one to deny his instinct, enfolded the Flea in a hug. He kissed the pale neck in front of him and with his own raspy voice, apologized.

"You just _throw_ yourself into the middle of the action without _thinking_." Izaya snapped refusing to give into the urge to grip the soft material in front of him.

"Do you even know how much you sound like a woman right now?" Shizuo questioned earning a glare and another slap.

"Shut up I don't sound like a woman I sound like worried boyfriend." Shizuo grinned and pulled the handle on the bathtub starting the water.

"Okay, so we'll compromise. I still want to find these people, but I won't go running head first into things. You can get the information right?" Shizuo asked as he adjusted the temperature smirking when he heard the offended snort.

"Of course I can get information, I'm an _informant_ you protozoan."

"Good, but you only get a few hours…you're still recovering."

"Did you want to find them or not?"

"You are the great Orihara Izaya; you can make do with only a few hours of computer time."

"What are you my mother?"

"Hey! I'm around a hell of a lot more than she ever was!"

"…Touché." Shizuo gently unwound the bandages on Izaya's torso. A light gasp was heard as he accidentally tore off part of the bandages that had stuck to the pale skin from dried blood.

"Sorry." Shizuo murmured while trying to be gentle. He unwound the rest of the bandages from Izaya's waist. He helped the brunette slip out of the clothing before helping him climb into the bathtub.

"Ahh it's hot!" Izaya complained.

"It's lukewarm Izaya."

"It burns." He whined. Shizuo placed the back of his hand on Izaya's forehead.

"You have a fever." Shizuo stated as he turned the water down. Izaya rolled his eyes while sticking his foot under the colder water that was slowly filling the tub. A fever was obvious; he was sweating for no apparent reason, and he was unusually crabby. Shizuo sighed trying to keep his temper in check. There were times when Izaya really did piss him off. Shizuo turned the water off just as the water brushed the tops of Izaya's legs.

"Don't we have any bath salts?" Izaya pouted.

"You can't have any with those injuries Izaya." Shizuo said while pinching the bridge of his nose with his finger and thumb.

"Lame." Izaya mumbled while flicking the top of the bath water like a reprimanded four year old. Shizuo sighed trying to stay calm. He really needed a cigarette.

"I'll be back…just don't let the water get inside your wounds." Shizuo sighed.

"Taking a smoke?" Izaya asked with his head tilted to the side.

"Yeah." Shizuo said as he located his pack of cigarettes and lighter. He stepped outside onto the balcony and bit down on the end of the cigarette. After fumbling with the lighter for a moment, he finally lit it and touched it to the end of his cigarette. He pocketed the lighter while he inhaled relishing the calming feeling that immediately washed over him.

He released the smoke in the form of a sigh and inhaled again, leaning against the wall of the house, not even feeling the chill. He barely felt the cold of being outside, unlike Izaya who tended to become very cold very fast. His stomach crawled with a nervous feeling when he remembered that Shinra had said that he had mild hypothermia. How long had Izaya laid out in the cold before Celty had arrived? He took another drag and paused a moment for the calm. He would need to call Tom and let him know that he needed a few days off. He wouldn't tell him it was for Izaya, not yet, but that he was going to be taking care of a friend who got injured for a little bit and wouldn't be able to come in for a few weeks. Of course this meant that he had to deal with Izaya for weeks on end. It was strange to think that even though they had been dating for years, they still hadn't spent this much time with each other since middle school. They both had changed so much; Shizuo wasn't sure just how much he could take of Izaya before he snapped.

The little flea was starting to annoy him and there really was only so much of Izaya he could take in a day; that time was shortened when he was sick. He always seemed to be, well for a lack of better word, bitchy. Izaya always changed his mind on _something_ and if it didn't go how he wanted it then Shizuo could expect some sort of an attitude. He could just leave the Flea and let someone else deal with it, but the pain would be great to Shizuo himself. The man annoyed him to the ends of the earth but there was also the feeling of satisfaction when they were together, and the strange sensation of peace. There were so many sweet moments the two had as a couple as well, enough to make the bitter moments okay. Celty's words from that afternoon were bouncing around in his head. Did Izaya really want him to say "I love you?" In the end how much did it really matter? Izaya loved him, he had never said it, but Shizuo _knew_. At first, it felt strange to love someone other than Kasuka but every time he laid eyes on the man a little feeling of joy popped up and upon occasion was crushed by the Flea's annoying, "I am God" attitude. Was it perhaps that Izaya was waiting for him to say the words? Did he not feel that Shizuo loved him more than anything? Shizuo took out another cigarette and lit it struggling to find a balance in his mind where things would make sense.

"You okay?" Shizuo nearly jumped at the sound of the other male and blinked when he saw that Izaya's hair was dripping slightly onto his shirt from the bath. His bare feet curled in the snow and his arms gripped his elbows as he hugged himself, trying to keep warm.

"Yeah, why?"

"You've been out here for almost an hour." Izaya stated.

"Oh, sorry about that." Shizuo said while looking at the cigarette in his hand.

"No, its okay…I just got worried." Izaya answered looking slightly pale in the light of the moon. The wind blew and the smaller man shivered.

"Go inside, you shouldn't be out here in this weather." Shizuo said as he turned while sticking the cigarette in his mouth and removing his shirt, he placed the large shirt over Izaya's shoulders as the younger man shook his head, and then put an arm around the small man. The brunette nudged himself into the blonde's side taking the precious warmth he provided then reached up with nimble fingers and plucked the cigarette from between Shizuo's lips.

"You know you shouldn't smoke these, they're shit for your lungs." The brunette said as he placed the cigarette between his own lips and took a drag. Shizuo frowned and attempted to take the cancer stick back, "You're going to kill me Shizu-Chan, making me smoke these so you don't smoke too many in one day," Izaya said in a pouting tone then looked up at the older man. Shizuo rolled his eyes and reached for his packet of cigarettes but they too were plucked from his grip as he brought them from his pant pocket. Izaya wiggled his finger in front of Shizuo's face making a tut tut tut sound. Shizuo frowned as Izaya finished off the rest of his cigarette and tossed the butt into the ash tray by the door. Shizuo sighed and knowing that he wouldn't get his cigarette's back, he led the younger into the house as his shivering increased. The progress to the living room was slow as Izaya tried not to stretch anything out too far. Shizuo was never too far away when Izaya tripped or stumbled over fatigued feet, and always caught the other by the elbow and gently helped him to the couch.

"Did you wrap it yet?" Shizuo asked as he grabbed the end of Izaya's shirt to look.

"No. Not sure how…." Izaya answered while helping to remove the shirt. Shizuo nodded and left Izaya sitting on the couch while he grabbed the bandages from the bathroom. He sanitized the wound with something similar to Neosporin then gently placed one of the gauze pads on the wound and asked Izaya to hold it for him. He placed the end of the bandages on Izaya's side and he wrapped it around the slim body until he had just enough to loop the bandage over and tie it on top of the wound. He did the same for the shoulder wound.

"I really do need to get some work done." Izaya said as he moved to his computers loosely placing a hand over his stomach.

"I suppose I can make something to eat if you're hungry." Shizuo said as he rubbed his chin.

"Yeah, I didn't really get dinner…" Izaya agreed as he gingerly sat down at his desktop and turned on all of his computers. The room fell into silence as Shizuo shuffled through the fridge to find something to cook and Izaya concentrated on doing eight things at once.

"How do you feel about breakfast for dinner?" Shizuo asked after only seeing eggs, ham, and other items to make omelets with. There was no answer, "Izaya!" There was no reply which earned a deep sigh from Shizuo; the informant was too far into his work to surface for a while.

"Screw it, you get what you get." Shizuo grumbled as he pulled out the ingredients. Thirty minutes later he had an omelet, sausage, and a small salad on a plate for Izaya and one for himself. Shizuo walked past the living room and into Izaya's spacious work area.

"Oi Flea, dinners ready."

_"..."_

"Izaya!"

_clickclicktaptaptap._ Shizuo sighed and stood in front of his boyfriend only to be ignored as Izaya switched computers typing again and smirking triumphantly. He switched computers again and the smirk disappeared, a frown in its place. Shizuo stood behind the informant and covered his eyes with both hands.

"If you don't get up and go to dinner now, I will pick you up and force you there myself." Shizuo threatened. Izaya gripped Shizuo's hands with his own.

"Yeah, okay just let me finish this."

"No."

"Shizu-chan." Izaya whined, "If I stop now they'll all wonder where I've gone."

"Say goodbye." Shizuo ordered as he released his captive. Six chats and a blog later Shizuo had forced Izaya up and out of the chair and into the kitchen.

"Breakfast?" Izaya asked as he sat next to Shizuo.

"I asked if it was okay but you didn't answer. You really need to go shopping." Shizuo answered as he cut into his omelet.

"Oh I was going to do that today but I got a little…well sidetracked."

"Is that what you'd call it?"

"…Yes." Shizuo rolled his eyes but stayed silent. Shizuo followed Izaya to the couch where they sat with the T.V. on for background noise purposes. Shizuo shifted slightly as Izaya leaned against him plate cradled in one hand and the other holding his chopsticks. Shizuo turned his torso and opened his legs to allow the brunette to sit in his lap.

"How's Kasuka?" Izaya asked softly.

"Well, he's got another gig but he'll be away and in a prefecture called Yamanashi. He says it's a town with lots of scenery and nice people so I'm not too worried. He should only be there for a couple of weeks." Shizuo answered.

"That's good…warn me if he comes to visit again. I didn't exactly _like_ hiding out in your closet while you entertained him."

"I'm not hiding it anymore Izaya. I'm sticking as close to you as I can, I'll protect you."

"What happens when you have to go to work?" Izaya asked with a slight glare.

"Then I go to work and I'll _trust you_ to call if anything happens. I'll always have my phone on." Shizuo answered, "I'm not giving you a say on this one Izaya. We tried your way and it worked for a little bit, but now you're hurt and you can barely walk into another room without getting winded."

"That doesn't mean I'm helpless."

"No, it means you're vulnerable."

"I can still fight them off."

"For how long? Not as long as it used to be."

"…Once we come out with this Shizu-Chan, there's no going back." Izaya said while craning his neck to look at the blonde.

"I know." Shizuo said with a stern voice making Izaya smirk.

"As long as you're sure." Izaya said then offered a kiss to the other man. They settled back and turned their attention to the show. Shizuo stacked their empty plates and for the moment Izaya forgot about work and relaxed on the couch with Shizuo, who was now rubbing light circles on his thigh with one hand while the other was wrapped lightly around his waist, being mindful of his injury. Izaya shivered slightly and Shizuo responded by pulling the brunette closer and laying his cheek on the soft dark brown, almost black hair. It was the moments like this that Shizuo loved. Where they didn't have to hide or say anything. Where the atmosphere just felt _right_ and no one had to do anything to make it better. Where they didn't have to pretend to hate each other and where they _knew_ they were safe. And wasn't that all that mattered? They didn't have to say the words if they could feel them. For moments like this, Shizuo would give anything just to have one more. Shizuo looked down to see that Izaya had fallen asleep and was slightly curled up in his lap. Sighing he shifted so the other would be more comfortable in his lap. Izaya shifted, curling into Shizuo and laying his cheek on the elders chest.

"You're a pain." Shizuo mumbled while running his fingers through the silky locks of the younger. Izaya responded with the slow rise and fall of his chest and a soft exhale through his mouth every few seconds. Shizuo sighed and wrapped his arms around the man preparing to fall asleep as well when he remembered about the computers. If there was one thing Izaya _hated_ it was leaving the computers on overnight and not completing work.

With a small groan Shizuo carefully moved Izaya so he was lying on the couch then went over to Izaya's work area. He attempted to sound like Izaya by saying that something had come up and he was leaving the chats. The responses were fast and they came all at once. Shizuo barely had time to read one before the next popped up and the next. Sighing he saved the conversations and logged off. He properly saved the rest of Izaya's work before closing the laptops and shutting off all the computers. Feeling too tired to carry Izaya upstairs to bed, he simply took a spot on the couch and gathered the other in his arms, closed his eyes, and went to sleep.

_UragirinoyuuyakeUragirinoyuu yakeUragirinoyuuyakeuragirin oyuuyakeDRRR_

"The subject has been terminated."

"Gentlemen, we have officially eliminated the pest of Ikebukuro and Shibuya!"

"Have you now?" One voice stood above the cheering that had erupted in the storage building.

"What would make you question my two best men?" The leader questioned his hand in a fist and resting under his chin as he sat on a chair on a raised platform.

"Where's his head?" The man asked, "Where's the proof that he's dead and that he didn't contact someone as he died. They sure as hell didn't shoot him in a lethal place."

"I don't believe this; we are being questioned by someone who has only been with us for a week?" One of the assassins sneered.

"That's fine, you can believe that you killed him, but when he shows up towing around Heiwajima with him then you can die knowing that you did _not_ kill the infamous informant." The man shrugged holding his hands at shoulder level and palm up showing a pointer finger was missing on his right hand.

"What do you mean Shirozake? Heiwajima has made it his life's goal to kill Orihara." The leader questioned.

"You do not know? Has no one informed you?"

"Informed me of what?"

"They are a couple." Laughter erupted from the people gathered only to be silenced by a hand from their chief.

"And what is _your_ proof?"

"Other than the fact that they were dating in middle school and just so happened to "Break up" in high school when Orihara made an enemy of you? Only a few…guesses."

"And what are these, guesses?" The leader asked impatiently. Shirozake smirked and crossed his arm.

"Well now, that would cost you."

"I am your leader, you are obliged to answer."

"Perhaps leaving this little kiddy club is my only option then. Go ahead kill off your traitor." He laughed, his smirk growing wider as he spread his arms daring them to kill him. The boss grit his teeth then clenched his fists.

"Very well then." Shirozake collected a large roll of cash from the man and counted it before speaking.

"Heiwajima is living with Orihara as we speak. He hasn't left that apartment for a whole day and one of my own informants has notified me that they just fell asleep, together." Shirozake answered while pocketing the money.

"I guess we'll be making a house visit."

"That might not be the best option."

"Are you questioning me?"

"Quite frankly yes, I am." Shirozake placed a hand in his pocket, "There are people living in those apartments that aren't your target. They aren't just commoners either; you have to have money to get _those_ apartments. Anyone you may injure could be someone important enough to get you all thrown in jail. No, this would need careful planning and no offence but your supposed _best_ have already failed you. I would like to suggest myself to complete this mission."

"And why should I trust you?"

"Why shouldn't you? I want Orihara Izaya dead just as much as you do. He's hurt both of us too close for it to slip away. You lost a wife, I lost a sister." Shirozake answered with a shrug.

"Very well but some of my closest men will go as well."

"Send them all if you like but Orihara is to only be killed by me."

"…Very well."

**I'm so glad you guys like the story so far! Keep reviewing and let me know what you think! **

**Thanks for reading,**

**Koibito~**


	3. The Other Two

**Chapter 3**

"Oh, I have to go now guys! I'll see you around!" Kida Masaomi chirped as he ran from the park bench where he had been, unsuccessfully, hitting on girls while Ryuugamine Mikado and Sonohara Anri had watched him. The hours were getting late and Kida knew his friends wanted to go home but he didn't want to say goodbye, it was selfish of him and he knew that, but he didn't want to let go. When he got the text from an old gang member, however, he knew he needed to go and fast. He ran off after watching the two shake their heads and walk away. The smile fell from Kida's face as he stuffed his hands in his pockets wondering if he was even going to be walking home tonight. He leaned against the wall in a dark alley waiting for the second man to show. Just when he was getting agitated enough to leave, something in the shadows shifted and Kida's muscles tensed.

"Ahh, Kida-kun long time no see."

"Yeah." Kida said lamely carefully watching the other's moves.

"You seem tense, don't trust an old friend?"

"Honestly? No."

"So harsh Kida-kun, you can trust me."

"That didn't work out so well last time, if I remember correctly."

"…Still bitter are we?"

"…"

"Well, that was the past and this is the now." The man stepped out of the shadows slightly, exposing a hand that had no pointer finger.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm going to need you and your little friends help." The voice created shivers down Kida's spine. Instantly anger bubbled over the lining of his stomach and a nasty, growling sound ripped from his throat making the words seem like venom, "_If you even think about touching Mikado, I'll rip you to shreds right here."_ A chuckle sent the shiver of ice sliding down Kida's back again.

"Protective are we? That's good, maybe you'll be able to protect _this_ one if something goes wrong, you see _boy_ you don't have a choice in this. Do you really think your precious little Mikado will be able to protect himself from me? Do you really think you'll be able to kill me? You're unarmed aren't you? Don't even answer your face says it all."

"I _swear_ Shirozake, if you attack Mikado, I'll _kill_ you." Kida's hands were curled tightly into fists and a slight tingle told him that he was creating crimson, half moon shapes in the palms of his hands.

"I like that look in your eye. It means you're serious." Before Kida could even react the older man had pinned him to the alley wall with a forearm against his windpipe and a gun pressed to the side of his head, "Once again, you don't have a choice in the matter and you _can't_ stop me. Just say yes and let me give you the details." Kida gripped tightly at the arm crushing his throat, gagging when he tried to draw in air. The pressure lightened just a tad and he was able to whisper out words.

"Don't hurt him," Kida pleaded his heart pounding in his ears as the thoughts of Mikado being ruthlessly killed rushed into his mind.

"Just cooperate and little Mikado will walk away from this scratch free," Shirozake cooed. White dots crowded Kida's vision and he coughed trying to get some sort of air while attempting to ignore the gun pressed to the side of his head. Reluctantly he nodded agreeing to whatever Shirozake wanted from him. The gun disappeared but the pressure at his throat stayed. Kida drug his feet across the ground trying to get away from the ex-Yellow Scarves and ex-Yakuza member.

"Your job is simple. All I need you to do is get close to Orihara Izaya. I'll pay a visit to little Mikado myself and let him know what's going on." The spike of fear that ran through Kida's body was enough to send his heartbeat skyrocketing but not enough to give him an adrenaline boost that would knock the older man away, "No need to panic, I won't tell him you're the leader of the Yellow Scarves." The arm vanished from his throat and Kida fell to the ground catching himself with his arms, coughing and gagging for breath.

"I'm glad you accept my little offer," Kida's chin was harshly gripped and he was forced to look into dark eyes, "I'll let you know what to do next when you befriend him." Shirozake's rough mannerisms were expected; the knee that connected with his diaphragm however, was not. A sharp yelp came from his throat and the black tunnel that forced its way into his vision, invited the ground to his face. That was the last thing he remembered before being slung over a shoulder.

_Linebreakindisguseagainlineb reakindisguiseagainlinebreak indisguiseagain _

Shirozake shifted the body on his shoulder before casually knocking on the apartment door. There was a call of a "Please wait," as a few things had shifted around. The sounds of hurried and nervous feet were heard as they scurried across the small floor in the flat. The door opened quickly after that and the poor boy on the other side froze in shock at seeing his best friend slung over the shoulder of a stranger.

"Ahh, Mikado-kun." The boy seemed to be shocked out of his stupor.

"H-How do you know my name?"

"I've just been watching is all."

"…A stalker?" Mikado asked softly his eyes darting to Kida's still figure.

"Hmm? Oh, he's not dead. In fact I'll hand him over to you, as soon as you accept my offer."

"Offer?"

"You see Orihara Izaya seems to be interested in you. You hold his attention longer than most humans. All I need you to do is get close to him, be a friend he can rely on. If you agree I'll give you your friend right here and now…but if not well…" He carefully shifted his jacket back to show the pistol the waistband of his pants. Mikado's eyes widened as his heartbeat increased.

"Okay, okay! Just don't hurt Kida-kun!"

"Good boy." Shirozake grabbed the back of Kida's hood and tossed the boy at Mikado who fell to the ground after attempting to catch his friend, "Once you've completed that part of the mission, I'll come back and let you know what else to do alright?" Mikado gulped and nodded wrapping his arms tightly around Kida's motionless figure. With that the man slid his hands into his pockets and left, closing the door with a small click.

"Kida-kun!" Mikado breathlessly called for his friend's name. The blonde head merely rolled into Mikado's chest as the body was rattled back and forth. With a worried noise from the back of his throat, Mikado hooked his arms under Kida's armpits and dragged him across the floor. He carefully lowered the older male to the floor and rushed to his futon. He took it down from its little spot in a shelf and quickly spread it out on the floor. He pulled the covers back and grabbed Kida again. He gave an annoyed huff of air when the blonde's feet caught on the end of the futon. He lowered the blonde to the ground again and took hold of his ankles and dragged them over the futon. After carefully aligning the body he removed the sweatshirt from his unconscious friend's torso. He sharply inhaled when he saw the red swelling around the tan neck in front of him, his eyes darted down to make sure his best friend was in fact breathing before staring at the inflammation again.

"Kida-kun! Wake up." Mikado shook the slim shoulders as he shouted. He bit his lip when he got no reaction. His computer beeped, telling him that someone logged into the chat room. He covered Kida up and carefully padded over to his cell phone. He grabbed the device and flipped it open his thumb hesitated over Dollars. With a determined look and steel in his eyes he pressed the button and sent out a text.

_** [Send information on Orihara Izaya. Who is he?] **_

Texts immediately started coming in:

_[He's dangerous! Stay away!]_

_[This is the leader of Dollars isn't it!]_

_ [You want information on an informant? How bold boss]_

_ [What did he do?]_

_**[How can I find him?]**_

_[Doesn't he live in Shibuya, in the really nice apartment complex?]_

His computer chimed, signaling a message.

{Kanra: Did you all just get that text?}

{Seton: Yes…I wonder why the leader wants information on Izaya…}

{Kanra: Who knows :)}

{Seton: Perhaps he sent someone after him…}

{Kanra: Unlikely…TanakaTaro? Thoughts?}

{TanakaTaro: Perhaps he's tired of being messed with?}

{Seton: ?}

{Kanra: Ooooh you know something don't you Tanaka!}

{TanakaTaro: Gotta go…A friends over}

{Seton:…bye}

{Kanra: No no! Share!}

{Seton: Kanra!}

{Kanra: .}

**Private Message**

{PM Kanra to TanakaTaro: Tell or I'll make a visit to your place.} Mikado blinked slightly shocked his cursor hovering over the log out button. He glanced at Kida who began to stir and was now coughing slightly.

{Kanra: I'm commminnnggg}

{TanakaTaro: I don't know anything about him. The Dollars leader must want something from him. I really do have to go now, sorry.}

{Kanra: Liar}

**TanakaTaro has left the chat**

Mikado was about to go to Kida's side when he phone buzzed again,

_[If you want Orihara Izaya, you have to find Heiwajima Shizuo.]_ Mikado sighed; this was becoming something much bigger than he wanted to deal with.

"Heiwajima Shizuo huh…who is that?" Mikado thought back to when he first came to Ikebukuro, Kida-kun had told him to stay away from both Heiwajima and Orihara. Heiwajima was the blonde who threw vending machines and Orihara was the one that Kida was so tense around…he was also the one that seemed to want to talk with Mikado. Perhaps he could use that to his advantage?

"Mikado?" Mikado blinked and turned on his heel.

"Ahh! Kida-kun! You're awake, I'm glad. How do you feel?" Mikado rushed to Kida's side while feeling for a temperature.

"My head hurts…so does my chest and neck…But are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" Mikado assured as he eyed the now black and blue bruise on Kida's neck.

"He didn't hurt you did he?"

"No…You should rest! Do you want some tea? I can make you tea." Mikado rose to his feet and turned prepared to make some tea when he was stopped by the firm grip on his wrist.

"Are you lying?" Kida seemed somewhat hurt as he asked his question.

"No! I'm okay really!" Mikado rushed out feeling somewhat nervous as Kida held his wrist. Kida yanked on Mikado's arm causing the younger, clumsier teen to fall to the floor. Kida cupped Mikado's face and look him in the eye his own golden eyes full of an unsure hurt.

"Don't lie."

"I'm not," Mikado answered his voice unwavering but his heart pounding in his chest; Kida was just so close to him. The golden eyes searched the navy before the younger black haired boy was pulled into a hug.

"Sorry," Kida mumbled. "I was worried."

"_I_ was worried, _you_ were the one who was unconscious," Mikado answered hesitantly wrapping his arms around the other teen. After a short and slightly awkward moment, Mikado pulled away mumbling something about making tea. Kida bit his lip; he couldn't take it anymore it was now or never. He needed to know how Mikado felt. He grabbed Mikado's wrist again before the boy got too far and pulled him down to the ground earning a lovely surprised noise.

"Mi-Mikado…" Kida was blushing heavily.

"Y-Yes?" Kida placed a hand on the back of Mikado's head and after hesitating for just one moment said,

"I really like you," He brought their lips together in a clumsy kiss.

_UragirinoyuuyakeUragirinoyuu yakeuragirinoyuuyakeuragirin oyuuyakeDRRR_

"Where exactly do you think you're going?" Shizuo asked as Izaya grabbed keys and his jacket.

"I need to make a house visit."

"No."

"No?"

"Come back, you don't need to go see anyone."

"I beg to differ Shizu-Chan. I'll be back soon though."

"…I'm going with you."

"I don't need-,"

"I don't care. I'm going with you." Shizuo grabbed his coat and a scarf that he wrapped around Izaya's neck then forced the younger to take a step forward by gently tugging on said scarf, "No ifs ands or buts." He kissed the frowning lips and took the keys from the others hand. Shizuo took Izaya's hand and led him out of the apartment complex.

"Shizuo…People are staring."

"So let them," Shizuo shrugged while tightening his grip on Izaya's hand. A shiver went through Izaya's body and he shifted closer to Shizuo who responded by releasing the others hand and putting his arm around the shorter man's shoulders. That was when the whispering began. Izaya paid for the train tickets when they arrived at the station.

"They're so predictable." Izaya mumbled as he looked at a group of people in the corner of the station. Shizuo looked across the station and shrugged his shoulders.

"It's what they do, they're high school girls. Anyway, why are we going to 'bukuro?"

"I told you Shizu-Chan, I need to make a house visit."

"…Well if you start feeling tired let me know and we'll take a break."

"I'm fine. It's just a couple of train rides and a little walk."

"Whatever you say," Shizuo said as he found them a seat. The train ride was silent as they rode and arrived in Ikebukuro an hour later. Thirty minutes after that they arrived at some apartments that seemed like they could use some shaping up.

"Who's here?"

"TanakaTaro," Izaya answered.

"Who?"

"We'll we're about to find out," Izaya said then paused and turned to Shizuo, "I need you to do me a favor…he said he had a friend over and I need you to keep said friend in the room the whole time."

"Why?"

"Just do it," he said then knocked on the apartment door that he had traced the computers signal to. There was a quiet yelp and the scuffling of feet before the lock was undone from the inside and the door was pulled open.

"Ye-oh…" The black haired teen took a look at his two visitors and was promptly pulled away from the door by an unknown source and the door was shut.

"That wasn't very nice Mikado-kun~" Izaya sang.

"Mikado?" Shizuo questioned.

"Turns out I do know him." Izaya opened the door and waltzed in only to be stopped by the sight of one Kida Masaomi holding Mikado back with one arm and glaring at Izaya.

"And he is?" Shizuo asked as he looked around the cramped apartment.

"Ah, Kida Masaomi," Izaya answered to Shizuo as he placed his hands on his hips. He turned to Kida, "What a pleasant surprise."

"Get out," Kida growled.

"So cruel Kida-Kun! I just want to have a little conversation with little Mikado…or shall I say, TanakaTaro."

"How do you know that name?" Mikado asked somewhat shocked, he only used that name when talking with Kanra or Seton, or even Kida.

"Didn't I tell you to leave Mikado!" Kida hissed, "Go!"

"No, I'll talk to him." Mikado pressed his hand on Kida's arm trying to lower it.

"Are you _crazy_?" Kida asked as he put his hand against Mikado's chest.

"I'll call for you if I need you then. Okay?"

"I'll stay here." Shizuo offered knowing, just by Kida's body language exactly how he felt about leaving his friend with two of Ikebukuro's most dangerous. "Be nice." He added to Izaya. Mikado snuck around Kida's outstretched arm and went to the hallway with Izaya following. The door clicked shut behind them and Kida stood a fury in his eyes that had been absent for years.

"Damn it!" He kicked the nightstand.

"And people say _I_ have anger issues."

"Shut up! You didn't just allow your best friend to go into a hallway _alone_ with _Orihara_!"

"He'll be fine." Kida felt his eyebrow twitch, "You should probably worry about yourself." All the angry words that were about to spew from Kida's lips vanished as his confusion grew.

"Huh?"

"You should ice that." Shizuo pointed to the ugly looking bruises on Kida's neck.

"Its fine," Kida mumbled absentmindedly rubbing at his neck and unintentionally irritating it sending him into a coughing fit. Shizuo sighed and bent to look in the small freezer then took out two packages of frozen food and placed them around Kida's neck.

"Make sure you remove them every thirty minutes and just let it warm up so it doesn't stay contracted." Shizuo said as he leaned against the wall checking his watch. Kida glanced at the door to the apartment then slid against the wall burying his face in his hands letting the frozen food fall to the ground. It felt as if the world was falling around him and Heiwajima was there to make sure it crushed him.

"Fuck," He hissed.

"Headache?"

"No," Kida lied earning a sigh from Shizuo.

"I sure as hell didn't tag along to play therapist."

"Good, leave and take your parasite with you." Kida grabbed his hair and tried to keep the thoughts of Mikado in the hallway with Orihara out of his head. However thinking of Mikado made him think of the kiss he had planted on the teen. He sighed hoping that he didn't entirely shoot his relationship to hell when he kissed the shy boy. Mikado seemed awfully eager to leave the apartment with Orihara even though Kida had specifically told him that he was _dangerous_.

"Parasite huh, I'll have to use that one when he pisses me off." Shizuo's fingers itched toward his pocket where his cigarettes were but he knew enough to not smoke in these apartments.

"I thought you were leaving." Shizuo sighed deeply and sat next to the teen.

"I don't know what went on between you and Izaya nor do I want to know. I can assure you, he's not going to kill or maim your friend. He may come off like that but he's never physically hurt someone unless they attack first. He reads people pretty easily."

"Mikado is different!" Kida nearly shouted, "It's like he attracts trouble! Walking up to it like trouble has been his friend since he was a kid! Like people are never dangerous, I don't think Orihara gets a good read on him and _that's_ why he's always trying to get around him. Mikado isn't dumb he should _know_ stay away."

"He doesn't seem like that kind of kid, that would get swayed easily I mean."

"No…he won't be pulled in by a few fancy words," Kida said mainly to himself, "He's stronger than that…he's not like me. He's stronger than me…different."

"Different huh? Perhaps that's why Izaya wanted to come here. Although he was on the chartrooms before he just decided to leave." Shizuo scratched his head.

"Why would Mikado be talking to him?!" Kida's head snapped up his emotions swirling in a tunnel.

"He probably didn't even know it." Shizuo said as he leaned against the wall by the door.

"…"

"Izaya changes his personality and name online to throw off rival gangs," Shizuo said settling for chewing on an unlit cigarette. "It's how he gets information and spreads it."

"I don't care about his disgusting habits!"

"That makes two of us," Shizuo chuckled. There was a slam outside of the apartment causing Kida to jump up and tensed, heading for the door. Shizuo grabbed the teen by the hood of his jacket and pulled him back down then forced him to lie down.

"Let go!"

"I was serious you know," Shizuo changed the subject, "You really should ice that, it'll swell up and you'll end up having a hard time breathing," Shizuo said as he placed the frozen food back on Kida's neck while holding the flailing teen down with just one hand.

"Stop!" Kida yelped then fell into a coughing fit.

"You see, now you've irritated it. I don't know what you're so worried about anyway. I already told you, Izaya just wants some information not a fancy head to take home (no pun intended)." Shizuo released the teens shoulder as he turned onto his side to cough. Shizuo sighed and stood, this kid was strange but he could understand the feelings of being worried about someone you cared for. Hell if it was him in that kids shoes he'd probably be the same way…except he would have knocked the door down by this point. He grabbed a clean glass from the drainer and filled it with water.

"Here." He offered the glass to the blonde who seemed to be wheezing on the floor. Gold eyes slid to the glass and the boy slowly sat up accepting the glass with a nod of the head.

"Thanks," Kida mumbled after taking a few sips. Shizuo silently placed the frozen food back on the child's neck.

"Why are you so stressed out?" Shizuo asked trying to convince himself that he was curious instead of playing therapist. This earned him a slight glare, a calculating look, and a sigh of submission before he got an answer.

"I think I blew my relationship with Mikado."

"How's so?"

"I kissed my best friend," Kida admitted, "Fuck I'm stupid."

"I won't disagree to that. How'd he react?"

"He just kind of sat there, in shock I guess."

"Well he didn't push you away, or yell at you. I'd take that as something but you'll just have to ask him instead of taking my word." Shizuo said while checking the time. Izaya's bandages would need to be changed soon. There was a loud crash from outside the door and a yelp from Mikado.

"O-Orihara-san!" Shizuo didn't stop Kida this time, something was off. He followed Kida out of the room and cursed under his breath when he saw that Izaya had passed out and Mikado was trying to hold up the older male. Shizuo grabbed Izaya and quickly moved him inside, lifting up the black shirt to see that the bandages were coated in red liquid.

"Damn it," he cussed.

"Mikado! You're bleeding!" Kida's voice came closer as he ushered Mikado into the room.

"I hit my head on the wall when he fell…" Mikado answered.

"Do you have any bandages in here?" Shizuo asked as he quickly worked on removing the bandages from Izaya's body.

"Uh, yeah let me get them." Mikado quickly left for the bathroom while holding the back of his head. He brought out bandages and things to clean Izaya's wounds with.

"Sit." Kida ordered. Mikado hesitantly sat on the floor while Kida grabbed a cotton ball and dipped it in the liquid. He gently touched it to the back of Mikado's head while Shizuo made quick work of cleaning and wrapping Izaya's wounds.

"Ahh! Kida-kun! That hurts!" Mikado lurched forward but was stopped short by Kida grabbing his shoulder and pulling him back.

"I know but it needs to be cleaned or it'll get infected," Kida claimed while pressing the sanitizing liquid to Mikado's wound again. The teen yelped and tried to leave again but was pulled back once again, by the blonde who grabbed both of Mikado's wrists and held them together in one hand and cleansed the wound with the other. They both ignored Shizuo who was taking Izaya's pulse and smirking.

"Kida-_kun_ stop!" Mikado pleaded as Shizuo pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number. Kida moved his arm across Mikado's chest and held the boy back from rising once again.

"Shinra? Hey I'm pretty sure he's only passed out but I think you should come take a look anyway."

"…"

"Yes Izaya, and we aren't at the apartment right now, we're actually in Ikebukuro. I know he's not supposed to be outside but the flea wouldn't take no for an answer. Yeah fine I'll do that next time." There was a moment of silence before Shizuo asked for Mikado's address, then gave it to Shinra upon receiving it from the black haired teen.

"Okay, see you soon," Shizuo answered as Kida finished bandaging Mikado's wound.

"What did he want?" Kida whispered.

"Just to ask some questions," Mikado answered while gingerly touching the bandages.

"Like?" The blush that came to Mikado's cheeks only made Kida more nervous.

"N-Nothing really," Mikado answered felling embarrassed as his mind drifted to the conversation in the hallway.

_"If you don't tell me what information you already have on me I'll have to tell Blondie that you have the hot's for him." Once Izaya had seen the blush on Mikado's face he knew this was the right blackmail to pick. It was clearly a sensitive area for the awkward teen. _

_ "I think he already knows…" Mikado's fingers ghosted over his lips. Izaya frowned; this was not the reaction he was expecting. _

_ "Very well, I could just let it slip that the leader of the Dollars is his best friend." Izaya shrugged as if the matter didn't particularly matter to him. The blush fell away and a hardened look came into Mikado's blue eyes. His outer personality shattered only to be replaced by a calm, cool, and collected one. He began to look like the gang leader that he was. _

_ "Masaomi doesn't need to know that, I don't have the information I wanted on you but I did get a pleasing end result." _

_ "Enlighten me."_

_ Mikado chuckled darkly._

_ "You're at my door are you not?" The grin on Izaya's face widened._

_ "I thought there was something different about you. If Kida-kun knew-," Mikado slammed his fist into the wall beside him, a momentary lapse in control. _

_ "I said no." His voice was smooth and full of a serious intent that brought the cold realization upon Izaya that not only was the teen serious, he was willing to hurt Izaya to get what he wanted. Izaya's dark eyebrow rose into his hairline._

_ "My, my what a temper." There was a loud yelp from inside the room and a crash. Mikado's gang appearance dropped like a rock and his eyebrows furled creating the eternal worried look. He took a step toward the apartment door but was held back by Izaya's pale hand around his wrist. Within seconds Mikado was pulled away and shoved against the wall, then pinned there. _

_ "W-What are you doing?" Mikado asked as he tried to press his back against the wall to escape the sudden closeness of the informant. _

_ "He's fine," Izaya said avoiding Mikado's question, "I want to know why you seem to think that you need information on me." _

_ "Wha-You, How do you…" Now that Mikado thought back on it, Izaya always seemed to know what Mikado had wanted from him…just how did Izaya know that he wanted information on him that quickly? Izaya held up his cell phone showing the mass message that Mikado had sent out only hours before. If that didn't scare the poor high school student, Izaya's sudden pale face and watery eyes did. _

_ "You're in the Dollars…" Mikado whispered. Someone had invited Orihara to be an honorary Dollar member. Mikado managed one step before Izaya's strength seemed to leave him and his arm grew weak allowing Mikado another step. Sweat began to form on his forehead and the informants breathing quickened. _

_ "A-Are you feeling okay Orihara-san?" Izaya blinked once as if he were having trouble hearing Mikado. One of Izaya's hands moved to his abdomen and the other began to weakly clutch at Mikado's shirt. _

_ "Oh god." Mikado whispered as red began to drip over the side of Izaya's fingers, "Maybe you should sit down…Orihara-san?" Izaya didn't seem to hear him at all this time, no blink no nothing. Izaya suddenly dropped to the ground his grip on Mikado's jacket forced the teen down with him._

"_O-Orihara-san!" Mikado's head cracked against the wall behind him as he reached out to catch the older male before his face met concrete. That was when the door opened…_

"_Mikado_!" Kida's voice sounded awfully frantic and the tight grip on his shoulders had been missed until now.

"Ah, sorry Kida-kun…" Mikado said vaguely embarrassed that he had spaced off. "We should get you to a hospital…" Kida mumbled after placing the knuckles of his fingers on Mikado's forehead.

"I have a friend coming over, he can look at you." Shizuo spoke up after a few moments of silence. Kida jumped slightly, forgetting that the other man was in the room. He spun sharply about to tell off the other man about inviting strangers over to Mikado's apartment when he realized exactly _who_ he was about to yell at. Shizuo's eyes narrowed as he sensed the tension coming from the small blonde and his arms tightened around Izaya's shoulders.

"W-Why don't we calm down," Mikado chuckled nervously. Trying to keep his temper in check was proving to be difficult so Shizuo stood, carefully situated Izaya on the floor, grabbed a pack of cigarettes, and left.

"You're acting strange Kida-kun."

"No I'm not."

"…Then what would you call it?"

"I'm protecting you from getting attacked by one of these two!" Kida's voice was strained as he pointed to an unconscious Izaya.

"…Not that."

"What?"

"I didn't mean that. I meant…before when you…"

"…Oh." Kida's face turned red and he looked down, "I'm sorry."

"Why? Do you regret it?" Mikado asked his navy eyes trained on the top of Kida's bowed head.

"Regret it?"

"Yeah, do you? Because…" Mikado faltered and lost his nerve.

"I'm sorry…" Kida repeated, "I didn't want to mess up our friendship but I just-I can't…" Mikado took a breath and with a red face gathered his nerves again.

"Because…I don't." Kida's head snapped up.

"Huh?" Mikado smirked.

"I don't regret it…I kissed you back you know."

"Kida-ku~n I think that's your invitation to kiss him," Izaya's incredibly weak and slightly irritated voice sounded from his spot on the floor as he rubbed his forehead. Mikado's blush darkened and he awkwardly scratched the back of his head. Kida suddenly irritated, grabbed Mikado's wrist and pulled him out of the sitting room and into the teen's small kitchen.

"K-Kida-kun?"

"He pisses me off…"

"He's hurt." Mikado defended.

"So…"

"I don't know what he did to you but…it doesn't seem like he's after you anymore."

"No he's not. He's after _you_, which is unforgivable," Kida said with a clenched fist.

"I can take care of myself," Mikado answered, "I promise I'll be okay."

"Just stay away from him."

"I-I can't."

"Yes you can!"

"No…that guy…from earlier…he said I needed to become friends with Orihara-san and Heiwajima-san…if I didn't…" Mikado's voice was just below a whisper.

"…I get it." Kida answered. Mikado shifted uncomfortably.

"…Um…" Kida lifted his eyes up to meet Mikado's shy ones. In an instant his normal persona was shining and a smirk graced Kida's tan face. He took a step closer to Mikado pressing their chests together.

"Yes, Mi-ka-_do_?" Mikado licked his dry lips and gripped the counter behind him. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it at the last second before looking down losing his nerve again. A warm finger curled under his chin and a slight pressure forced his head up. Kida chuckled as the blush dusting Mikado's cheeks darkened. As he moved closer to the black haired teen Kida found his own cheeks heating up. Mikado's eyelids fluttered and closed half way. His knuckles began to turn white from gripping the edge of the counter so tightly and his heart began to race as Kida inched closer once more. He swallowed thickly and watched Kida do the same. Kida's hot breath fanned across his face and his stomach began to flutter. Kida seemed to hesitate his fingers that were holding up Mikado's chin began to quiver and his golden eyes seemed to be asking if it was okay. Mikado pushed his chin forward connecting their lips and surprising the blonde. He watched as tanned lids covered the gold iris and let his own eye lids fall shut.

The quivering hand fell from Mikado's chin and went to his chest. The fingers clutched at his thin jacket as Kida moved closer to him. The quick lick at his lips didn't go unnoticed and Mikado parted them hesitantly. He inhaled sharply when the alien feeling of another person's tongue entered his mouth. Kida's other hand wrapped around his waist and pulled him closer yet. Mikado shivered as Kida expertly ran his tongue along a sensitive spot in his mouth, and then whimpered quietly as his air ran out. He pulled away panting allowing Kida to press their foreheads together.

"Well now don't stop on the account of me, I'm just the doctor." Mikado jumped and whacked his head against the handle on his cupboard deepening the wound he already had. He held the spot blinking away the tears of pain, "_Ow_."

"Sorry, I didn't think you'd react like that." The doctor apologized. Kida took Mikado's wrist and brought it away from the back of his head only to find that his fingers were now coated in a sticky red fluid. Shizuo leaned against the entryway into the kitchen watching the scene with mild amusement. They reminded him of when he and Izaya were just starting out. It seemed like Izaya was always getting hurt. He looked to the man who was now sleeping on the futon in the sitting room. Sighing, he looked back over to Shinra who was now unwrapping the black haired boys head to look at it. He had informed him of the blonde's neck but it seemed that the blonde had pulled his jacket up to cover most of it.

"Alright I'm going to put a couple stitches in, I'll numb you first." Shinra said as he pulled out a syringe. The kid stiffened as he felt the needle pierce his skin and his hands clenched into fists as the medication was forced in. After waiting a few moments Shinra poked the back of Mikado's head, "Feel that?"

"No."

"Good," With that Shinra began to stitch up the wound, "It's nothing too serious so you really only need two. I'll be back in a few weeks to take them out." He removed his latex gloves and bandaged the wound.

"Thank you," Mikado said while feeling the secure bandages, "Is my head supposed to feel so heavy?"

"That's just the numbing injection. Take it easy and lay down for a bit, it should subside." Mikado nodded softly and stood from the chair he was sitting on.

"Thank you," He said again.

"No problem," Shinra said with a smile, "Next." He pointed to Kida beckoned him to come closer with a wave of his finger.

"I'm not hurt." Kida crossed his arms as Mikado sat on the floor.

"I'm not blind kid, I can see the bruises." Shinra's eyes narrowed as Kida jerked his sweatshirt up.

"Why are you being stubborn Kida-kun?" Mikado asked, "Just go, it's not like I haven't seen it already." Kida flushed and looked to the ceiling. With a huff he removed his sweater and sat on the chair Shinra was standing behind.

"That's quite the bruise," Shinra commented.

"I'm fine…it'll go away." Kida mumbled.

"I see what you mean," Shinra said to Shizuo before turning back to Kida. "It's quite bad. If this swelling gets worse you'll have some issues with your breathing, I assume it's already causing discomfort."

"A little," Kida mumbled feeling oddly out of place. Shinra hummed thoughtfully as he looked the teen over once again. He gently placed his hands on either side of Kida's throat and gently pressed.

"Does that hurt?"

"Yeah," Kida's voice was strained. Shinra nodded as he lightened the pressure and moved on to a lower part.

"Well you're pretty lucky if there was any more pressure put on you, then your trachea would have faltered and I doubt you'd be alive right now." Mikado shifted uncomfortably. As much as he wanted to know if Kida was going to be okay, he needed to talk to Orihara-san to make sure they would keep meeting. He ducked his head so that Kida would think that the news of his throat was making him jittery but in actuality he was moving toward his gang persona. He left the room and lifted his head showing the cold steeled look his eyes were sporting. Shizuo watched the teen walk to Izaya's resting spot.

"Ahh did you come to kick me while I'm down?" Izaya asked with a lazy blink.

"Not quite," Mikado answered his voice firm.

"Ahh so we're in that kind of mood~"

"Please excuse the intrusion." Mikado said bringing a confused look to Izaya's eyes. It disappeared as Mikado reached into the fur trimmed jacket and pulled out the informant's cell phone.

"My, my you little liar, you _are_ kicking me while I'm down." Mikado searched through the phones information and selected the "My phone number" section. He quickly added the information into his own cell phone and replaced the other's phone.

"Don't change your number or I'll be at _your_ doorstep. We still need to have a talk but we obviously can't have it here."

"Obviously." Izaya repeated with a grin. Things were getting interesting and he wanted to know more about "Ryuugamine Mikado," both the gang side and the nervous teen side.

"Mikado?" Mikado's body jumped and the cool gaze fell away once more to be replaced by the nervous teen persona.

"Kida-kun! What did Kishitani-sensei say?"

"What are you doing?" He asked ignoring the question.

"N-Nothing," He stammered, "Are you feeling okay?" Kida gave Mikado a weary glare but his gaze shifted to Izaya who was trying to sit up. Mikado followed his gaze and helped the man to sit.

"Well now that we've made a pointless trip out here, we'll be going." Shizuo slung Izaya's arm around his shoulders and grabbed him around the waist and helped him stand.

"I don't think it was so pointless. Do you Mikado-kun?"

"Not at all." Kida looked worriedly between the two, "I'll be in touch," Mikado said this in a low voice so Kida wouldn't overhear. He tried to look like a gang leader when facing Izaya but like the high school student in front of Kida. However he only succeeded in looking like he was going to pass out due to the effects of the numbing shot.

"Ryuugamine-kun I think you should lay down for a little bit," Shinra said to the woozy teenager. Kida immediately took over and grabbed Mikado's hand and pulled him to the futon as Shizuo pulled Izaya in the direction of the door.

"See you~" Izaya said cheerfully as they left. Shinra sighed.

"I better make sure they get home okay…if you have any questions call me," Shinra gave Kida his business card, "Any friend of Shizuo and Izaya's are welcome to my services."

"We aren't-," Kida started but was interrupted by Mikado.

"Thanks." Shinra smiled and left the apartment as well as Kida fussed over Mikado, "Kida-kun, I'm fine."

"Just lay down, doctors orders alright." Mikado grinned and gathered some of his nerves before grabbing Kida's jacket front and pulling him down.

"Lay with me?" Mikado asked before placing a light, feathery kiss on Kida's lips. Kida grinned and ran his thumb over the blush on Mikado's cheeks.

"Of course." Kida straddled Mikado's waist and placed wet kisses down the teen's neck. Mikado shuddered as Kida's teeth sunk into his flesh and he gasped as shivers flew down his spine at the sudden suck on his neck. He felt the gentle curve of Kida's lips as the blonde smirked. Mikado's grip tightened on the fabric in his hands and he turned his head to the side allowing Kida more room. Mikado's head spun as Kida reacted to the extra space. The bites became nibbles which turned into licks that molded smoothly into sucking. Mikado's arms shook and he panted trying to hold himself together but Kida refused to have any of that so he ran his fingers over the other's chest earning a lovely gasp. With one final lick Kida sat back and admired the now red and purple mark as well as the flushed face of his best friend turned boyfriend.

"Don't tell me that was your first hickey?" The darkening blush told Kida all he needed to know, "Aw you're so fucking cute."

"Am I supposed to feel so dizzy?" Mikado asked breathlessly.

"Probably not, that might be more of whatever that doc put in ya," Kida answered while running his hand through the black locks, "You should go to sleep." Mikado glared at his best friend/boyfriend.

"How can I do that after what you just did?"

"Are you implying that you want more from me?"

"No! I'm just saying…I need a minute." Mikado looked away. Kida chuckled deep in his throat. He leaned down next to Mikado's ear and licked the shell of it causing a shiver to go down the other teens spine.

"You can let go of my sweater," Kida whispered in a husky tone. Mikado's blush darkened and he released the shirt like it was poison. Kida climbed off of the teen and was going to grab an extra pillow from the closet when he was stopped by Mikado's hand around his wrist.

"Kida-Kun…what exactly are we?" Kida cocked his head to the right.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't think that we're just best friends anymore and I don't think I like the term friends with benefits…" Kida laughed again this time laughing so hard that he aggravated his throat again and started coughing. Mikado was about to sit up when Kida stopped him with a hand.

"You can call me your _boyfriend_ Mikado." Mikado's blush returned and he nodded. Boyfriends it was. Kida tried to rise again but Mikado didn't relinquish his hold.

"Stay."

"I'm going to; I was going to get another pillow." Mikado merely scooted over so half of the pillow was available for another head. Kida rolled his eyes but he laid next to the black haired teen anyway. Mikado's eyes stared at his until the drug in his system really took effect and the navy seemed to slowly disappear behind flesh colored curtains. Kida placed a kiss on the slumbering boy's forehead and wrapped his arms around the slim waist and watched the snow fall outside the window. He silently vowed to protect the bundle in his arms with is life.

**Wow this one was a long one! Yes Mikado and Kida have a role to play in this fic…I'll get to in chapter five I think?**

**Thanks for reading,**

**Koibito~**


	4. Shirozake's Intentions

**Chapter 4**

**Man I hate how FF edits. I apologize to anyone who had to see the strange format. **

"How are you feeling?" Shizuo asked as Izaya sipped on his hot chocolate.

"Better."

"You look better too, you skin isn't so sickly anymore."

"Well thank you Shizu-chan," Izaya said sarcastically.

"You know what I meant."

"…Are you working tomorrow?"

"No, I told Tom I was taking some time off," Shizuo answered while he ran his fingers through Izaya's hair. Izaya placed his drink off to the side wincing when he pulled his arm too far.

"Ahh," he hissed in pain.

"Shit I'm sorry Izaya I forgot your damn medicine. Hang on." Shizuo ran off to grab the bag he was sent home with.

"I'll do it Shizu-chan."

"No it's okay I'm supposed to do it, you'll stretch everything in all the wrong ways."

"Are you telling me you're going to stretch me in the right ways?" Izaya wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Shizuo glared slightly and uncapped the needle. A nervous look settled into Izaya's eye.

"Relax and it won't fucking hurt."

"Relax? How can I relax when you don't know what to do with that thing?"

"I've done it before!"

"Once!"

"Hold still." Shizuo forced Izaya's pants down and exposed his flesh. He plunged the needle into Izaya's rear and pushed the plunger down after realizing that he had actually hit the right spot.

"Ouch! Fuck Shizuo!"

"Calm down you're fucking fine." Shizuo answered with a swift smack to the already abused area. This action earned a lovely yelp and a glare as Izaya pulled his pants and boxers back up.

"You are such a brute." Shizuo gripped Izaya's chin and turned his head so that he was looking straight into chocolate eyes.

"You love it." Shizuo kissed the smaller man deeply.

"Apology accepted." Izaya mumbled slightly out of breath. Shizuo chuckled and kissed him again. His hand slid to cup the side of Izaya's cheek as he pressed the 23 year old onto the couch so he was lying underneath the blonde. Izaya curled an arm around the 24 year olds neck and parted his lips. Instantly the taste of cigarettes and chocolate filled his mouth. Izaya responded by teasingly scraping his teeth along the wet muscle and giving a very slight suck. Shizuo responded by ending the kiss with a light bite on Izaya's lower lip. He trailed hot, wet kisses down the informants jaw and lightly bit his way down the pale neck and ended by swirling his tongue around Izaya's Adams apple and sucking on it until a low groan was given in reward. He trailed up the other side of the long neck and bit down hard earning a gasp and two hands in his hair. He created a line of hickeys until he reached the mouth again. He planted a kiss on the informant's pink lips and it was broken shortly after by the informant who turned his head away from the blonde to cough and for his trembling right arm to drop back down to the couch where Izaya placed his left hand over the shoulder trying to ignore the pain.

"Fuck, shit Izaya, damn it I'm sorry," Shizuo muttered with a racing heart. He just didn't think sometimes. It had been so long since he had been able to be with Izaya and he couldn't resist the temptation that was Orihara Izaya.

"I'm _fine_ Shizu-chan." Izaya sounded annoyed as his red eyes burned into Shizuo's warm brown ones.

"You don't sound very convincing coughing like that," Shizuo said as Izaya coughed again. He placed the backside of his fingers against Izaya's forehead, "You want some water?"

"No." Izaya grabbed Shizuo's arm so he wouldn't leave, "I want _you_." Shizuo grinned and placed a kiss on the fever stricken forehead.

"And I appreciate that but we can't, not when you're like this."

"Like what? Don't you _dare_ start insinuating that I'm going to be some sort of feeble child who can't handle a little time with his fucking boyfriend." Shizuo sighed knowing Izaya was pissed with him. They were both clearly missing the feel of each other all together but for once in his life Shizuo needed to say no to the animal inside of him. That animal was telling him to just take Izaya right there on the couch, fuck everything else.

"I'm not calling you weak Izaya. I just don't think it's a good idea that we get carried away. You aren't weak. You're hurt and there is a major difference there. You were shot a little under 30 hours ago. You should still be with Shinra to make sure that nothing happens but I wanted you home."

"You don't think it's a good idea? That's a lie."

"What makes you say that?" Shizuo asked a little confused. Izaya lifted a knee and rolled it against Shizuo's obvious arousal.

"You're totally into this," Izaya said as Shizuo released a shuddering breath.

"Izaya stop." Izaya was about to say no when he was taken over by another round of coughing, "See that's the only reason I say stop. You're 23 years old, you can hold yourself back."

"No Shizuo. I'm forever 21. I'm in the prime of my youth and there is nothing I can do to "hold myself back," I'm far too young." Shiuzo rolled his eyes. They had celebrated the informants _third_ 21st birthday in May via skype, but Shizuo wouldn't let the informant forget his _real_ age. However there were times that playing along with his "young" age had its perks.

"Then because you are so young I, as a 24 year old, know when to stop and that is right. now." Shizuo ran a hand through the short hairs on Izaya's head, "Sorry babe." Izaya instantly flushed at the name.

"Whatever, I have work to do anyway. I'm falling behind again," Izaya mumbled, "Shiki-san will want some information and I'll be asking for some in return." Shizuo sighed as he ran a hand through his own hair. There were too many battles to fight and getting the informant to bed wasn't at the top of the list, getting some food in him however, was.

"You have until I'm finished cooking dinner." Shizuo placed a quick peck on Izaya's cheek and went to the kitchen to find that there was still no food in the fridge. Shizuo sighed and scratched the back of his head. Looked like it was going to be take-out, "Oi you still haven't shopped! I'm going to order in what do you want?"

"Anything's fine," Izaya answered while booting up his computers. Shizuo shrugged and ordered Chinese. Izaya might kill him for it but he hadn't had the stuff in ages. A steady clacking filled the room as Shizuo placed the order. He hung up after paying with one of Izaya's cards. The clicks and clacks stopped for a moment and coughing filled its place. Shizuo frowned and looked around the corner of the kitchen to see Izaya rubbing his chest then he started to type again. With hesitant fingers Shizuo dialed for Shinra.

"Hello?"

"Hey Shinra…its Shizuo." Shizuo spoke in a voice that was just above a whisper so that Izaya wouldn't know who he was talking to.

"Is something wrong?" Shinra immediately took his whispered voice the wrong way.

"Well no…well…yes? I don't know that's why I'm calling."

"What happened?"

"Izaya's been coughing a lot more and they're wet sounding coughs. He's also been running a pretty high fever."

"It's just because he was out in the cold for so long. He's going to have a bit of a cold."

"Right…okay."

"I promise he'll be fine, just keep him stress free and lots of liquids."

"Stress free? Easier said than done. I try to keep him off those damn computers but it stresses him out that work is piling up…then I let him on and he's stressed with what he has to accomplish." Shizuo sighed into the phone and leaned against the counter.

"Well at this point I'd say that you limit his time."

"I know but I'm his boyfriend not his mother."

"…Hmm Okay then, doctors orders, he can only be on the computer for an hour at a time. I'll leave it to you to enforce it." Shizuo could hear the smile in Shinra's voice.

"Okay thanks Shinra."

"Anytime…and Shizuo."

"Yeah?"

"Sorry."

"Nah you had all the rights to be upset…we should have told you earlier. I'm sorry." Shinra laughed.

"Well I'm glad it's you I'm talking to, I don't think Izaya would have caved that easily." Shizuo laughed and nodded even though Shinra wouldn't be able to see it.

"Well I'll call you if we need you…"

"I'll be here."

"Thanks."

"Mmhum. Bye."

"Bye." Shizuo hung up and sighed.

"Who was that? Shinra?" Izaya asked from his office.

"Yeah…Hey how did you know?"

"I didn't think there was anyone else that you'd talk to like that. What'd he say?"

"You can only be on your computers for an hour." Shizuo heard a pause in the typing then it resumed.

"We'll see about that." Two hours later the Chinese was cold and Izaya was still on the computers.

"I'm serious Izaya. Off."

"This is important work Shizu-chan. Shiki-san needs this information and I'll be able to get some information from him about those two ex-Yakuza's." Shizuo sighed, he really did want the information on the members but he knew Izaya needed to eat and then sleep. He went with his preferred plan of covering Izaya's eyes, instead of threatening the safety of the main power cord. He wanted Izaya to eat and take care of himself, not be pissed the rest of the night and into tomorrow. Izaya sighed, "Shizu-Chan I'm trying to work."

"I know. Time to eat." Izaya frowned as he placed his hands back on the keyboard and quickly located the home row by the raised marks on the F and J keys. He began typing once more. Shizuo grabbed both of Izaya's wrists and forced them into the informants lap, "Easy way, or the hard way?" Shiuzo offered him one last chance.

"Shizuo. This is important. I don't have the luxury to just walk away when I want to. There are very demanding people in this world and I have to satisfy them with information. It's only fair, they give me money and I provide information."

"Work later. Tell them something came up." Izaya placed his hand over Shizuo's and brought the hand away from his eyes so he could look at the taller male.

"Once again it's not that simple. I've got deadlines to fill and most of them are by tonight. I may be my own boss but I still have to get information out or pay the consequences."

"I won't let anyone hurt you," Shizuo said with a hard voice and concerned eyes. Izaya managed a smile and ignored the beeping of two of the IM's he had up on different monitors.

"That's not quite the repercussions I meant but the thought is sweet. The point is I have work to do and I have to get it done. I know you and Shinra both are trying to look out for me but I'm old enough to take care of myself."

"Then how about a break for food?" Shizuo asked persistently. Izaya sighed and looked over the work he had left.

"Yeah, alright. Just a small one though," Izaya said as he quickly typed away on his chats and other sites, "Let me make a quick distraction for these people." Shiuzo placed his hand under Izaya's chin and pushed until Izaya was looking straight at him.

"Thanks." Shizuo kissed him and released him back to work. Izaya nodded and continued typing.

_Thisismenotknowingwhattodofo rallinebreakthatsuggestsacha ngeinscene…._

Taihou paced back and forth in his inner chambers. Shirozake was supposedly trying to _help_ him by eliminating Orihara. Yet why would Shirozake offer something like this in front of him instead of just going ahead with his own plans. Taihou knew it was not because of his leadership of the gang that made Shiro want to get his approval. He made that clear enough when he made a fool of Taihou in front of his men. He clutched the picture of Orihara and Heiwajima in his hand. Shirozake had dropped it off to him moments ago as proof that Orihara was indeed alive. Time however was on their side if they acted quickly. As soon as Orihara was out of the house they would strike and go for the kill. They would not give him a chance to retaliate and they would not allow him to run. It would be a very quick kill and they would take his body to ensure that he was indeed dead.

This however brought up the problem of Heiwajima. They couldn't take him on individually and their chance of attacking as a group was raised slightly but not very significantly. Perhaps Shirozake wanted to use his group of men to distract Heiwajima and possibly overwhelm him with men so that he couldn't protect Orihara. This would create an opening for Shirozake to strike. It would have to be a pretty good kill shot or Heiwajima wouldn't hesitate in ripping Shirozake to shreds…which might not be such a bad plan. Taihou didn't intend on keeping Shirozake around after Orihara was killed, he would of course send his men after the traitor and have him shot down…perhaps his head would be necessary too so he didn't pull an Orihara. Taihou sighed and sat gracefully in his chair and sipped his wine. Things were becoming very complicated very quickly. Though all of this ran through his mind the one thing that constantly returned was the fact that Shiro hadn't asked for anything but his men's work. That was just strange and struck a wrong cord in Taihou's body. He grit his teeth as he tried to get inside of Shirozake's mind. At that moment however Shirozake came waltzing through his door, the guard outside of the door looked quite unsure of what he should do and Taihou made a mental note to let him go.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Taihou's steady voice betrayed the rage behind his eyes.

"You've actually done quite a bit for me," Shirozake said as he plucked a grape from Taihou's plate and ate it, "You make it quite hard for them to track me."

"You are using me to cover yourself?"

"Yes." The man didn't even try to hide it, "By hiding out here and pretending to be one of yours it's much harder to track me."

"So this was your plan all along? To use my men and my resources to your benefit?"

"Well it became that way only because your precious men failed to kill Orihara." He ate another grape.

"What do you plan to do after you kill Orihara? You haven't exactly covered your tracks against those teenage boys. They know who you are." Taihou was simply curious. He wanted to know how Shirozake thought he would get away.

"After I kill him? You make it sound like such a quick and simple ordeal. No. I want him to _suffer_, and suffer he will."

"You plan to torture him?"

"Just as he did my sister." Taihou's eyebrow rose, he wasn't against this torturing of Orihara but he didn't want it near any of his facilities. He was probably already on a list of people to watch out for. He had made it known after his wife's death that Orihara was going to pay.

"Where do you plan to do this? I'm not going to house your little game."

"…Of course not. I have a place in mind."

"Very well then," Taihou just had one more question, "What is the point in bringing in the two high school students?" They seemed to be a useless part of Shirozake's equation. Shirozake grinned widely and chuckled.

"Have you noticed that Orihara doesn't have any close friends?"

"…A part of his job I believe."

"Oh contraire, Orihara tends to become very attached to those he cares about."

"You're hoping that he'll befriend the two boys? What will you do then?" Taihou asked not really understanding where Shirozake was coming from.

"That will come in due time dear Taihou."

**Ugh evil people are so not my forte. I need to work on their characterization a bit ne~**

**Well as always thanks for reading,**

**Koibito~**


	5. Shizuo's Animal

Chapter 5

**This is a WARNING: this chapter has explicit sexual content that is not marked. You have been warned. This story is rated as such for this. **

"Shit." Shizuo looked up from his spot on the couch upon hearing the curse word from Izaya who was, of course, working. The brunette had a deep frown on his face and looked worried. Concerned, Shizuo stood and walked to stand behind the informant so he could try and see what was causing the strange reaction.

"What's wrong?" Izaya didn't even flinch.

"We have a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Shizuo asked as the butterflies took flight in his stomach.

"The man that put the hit on me, he has been burned."

"What does that even mean?"

"A burn notice? Everything about him has been erased from all files all computers and all employees are strictly forbidden from speaking of them."

"Do you know who it is? A name or anything?"

"…That's the problem…Do you remember the reason I wanted us to stay so far apart and to make ourselves declared public enemy's?"

"If we didn't then someone would have targeted me to get to you or vise versa. By making ourselves public enemy's we were able to check on each other's health by fighting with each other. If one of us didn't show we'd know something was wrong…right?" Shizuo scratched the back of his head not really seeing where this was going.

"Well I suppose I should rephrase my question. Do you remember the individual I was worried about?" Shizuo thought hard but no name came up, he shook his head.

"Does the name Taihou Kimi ring a bell?" Then it clicked in Shizuo's head.

"The guy who's wife died?"

"He thinks I was at fault for her death…"

"No way, you were with me the whole night! I remember giving our alibi to the cops!" Izaya shook his head.

"I didn't have to physically do it for him to think that, it could have been anything I said that set her off. It wasn't public but she wasn't exactly mentally sane."

"She was one of your clients right?" Izaya nodded.

"She wanted me to dig up some information on Taihou himself, she suspected an affair."

"I'm sure you weren't exactly kind when you told her there was one."

"I was straight with her," Izaya defended, "I wasn't going to sugar coat it for her."

"So she killed herself?"

"Yep."

"Now this fucker is out for revenge? Where is he?"

"Hang on Shizu-chan," Izaya grabbed Shizuo's sleeve to prevent him from leaving, "Taihou is the leader of a big gang full of ex-yakuza that managed to escape Shiki-san's gang. Rushing into wherever he is would be stupid. Not to mention he's been burned so right now all of Tokyo thinks he's dead."

"So all we have to do is get him and you'll be okay?" Shizuo's warm eyes were full of concern and Izaya took a breath preparing himself for the next bout of information that he was going to give.

"Not exactly…"

"What else is there?"

"…"

"Izaya…" Shizuo warned. Izaya looked up at Shizuo his eyes watery and his chin trembling, "…Izaya?" Shizuo's tone became worried and he took the smaller man in his arms, "What's wrong?"

"…His wife…was best friends with Umei Shirozake."

"Wait…that girl that you tried to save?"

"She was my friend for a long time…"

"I know. You told me that she took the death hard and went to you for comfort…"

"She found out that what I had told Taihou's wife had been one of the major factors in her death…"

"How would she know that?"

"She took the suicide note…"

"The police said there wasn't one."

"She didn't want such a respectable woman to be remembered for suicide."

"What did she do when she found out it was you?"

"She confessed…"

"Confessed what?"

"…That she loved me." Izaya looked up with such unbearably sad eyes that Shizuo realized how much she meant to Izaya.

"You…loved her?" His stomach sank and he couldn't keep the sorrow from his own eyes. His heart felt as if it were going to split with each beat. He felt like he was going to throw up, he had loved Izaya for so many years and it had only been half returned to him?

"No!" Izaya grabbed for Shizuo's hands and clutched them in his own, "She was my best friend…my only friend Shizu-chan…I had you but…it's like you and Celty. You know? You're best friends but you still have me!"

"It's okay…don't panic I understand." Shizuo soothed, and he did. If anything had happened that Shizuo wanted advice on the first person he'd go to would be Celty, then he would talk to Izaya.

"I love _you_! I've always loved you." Izaya still seemed to think Shizuo was hurt because he was standing now, still clutching Shizuo's hands and hiccupping to keep himself from actually sobbing. Shizuo blinked in shock, he had never heard Izaya say those words before. He wasn't sure what to say, he couldn't say them back…it was so sudden.

"…" Shizuo just stood there with his mouth slightly ajar.

"_Shizuo!_" Izaya was begging now and the tears fell from his eyes. Shizuo pulled himself together as another tear fell followed quickly by another. He used the pad of his thumb to wipe underneath the red eyes and the palm of his hand to clear the pale cheek. Shizuo gave the smaller male a dopey grin.

"That's the first time you've said it…" Izaya blinked and his hand trembled. He dropped Shizuo's hand and wrapped his arms around Shizuo tightly his face red.

"I'm saying it because it's _true_." Shizuo could hear the unspoken words that Izaya was trying to tell him, _"Just don't be mad_." The hiccupping was starting to get worse and Shizuo hugged him back tightly as Izaya's legs began to tremble.

"Hey," Shizuo spoke softly, "Listen…I'm always here for you too. I'm not mad Izaya. I understand, you did what you had to." Izaya took in shuddery breaths as they both sunk to the floor.

"I love you, I love you so much." Izaya gasped now on his knees.

"I love you." The words were unfamiliar and strange on Shizuo's lips but they left a pleasant taste in his mouth. They sat on the ground for a few moments locked in embrace until Izaya started to wiggle.

"Shizu-chan…it hurts." Instantly Shizuo relaxed his grip which had been getting steadily stronger.

"Sorry…I didn't open a wound did I?" Izaya shook his head against Shizuo's chest. Shizuo looped a finger underneath Izaya's chin and pulled his head up.

"'M okay…really."

"I really do…love you." Shizuo said as the butterflies became restless in his stomach. Izaya blinked in surprise again and Shizuo couldn't resist kissing him. Izaya's trembling hands found their way into Shizuo's hair and he kissed the older man back just as passionately. Izaya's intoxicating smell filled Shizuo's nose and the feel of the slim body beneath his hands brought out the animal in him. He moved his lips from Izaya's to the long, pale neck and bit it as he lowered the man to the ground.

"Ah…S-Shizu-Chan…I don't think right here is the best pl-place." Izaya twisted his hips underneath the larger man as the pleasure tingled down his spine and into his toes.

"Just relax." Shizuo's voice was deep and smooth and Izaya's internal alert system went off immediately. He was in trouble now, Shizuo only got this persistent when, what Izaya labeled as 'the animal' came out to play. Shizuo had only lost himself a few times around Izaya, mostly when he was angry, but when sexual tension was high Shizuo was known to lose the battle to his instincts.

"S-Shizu-_Chan_ you'll hurt me," Izaya gasped the last syllables because Shizuo had just moved his hand under the other's shirt. The blonde chuckled almost darkly and licked his lips.

"Sensitive today, aren't you?" Izaya gasped and arched his back in a semi-loud moan as his nipple was rolled between expert fingers. The black V-neck shirt that Izaya was wearing was quickly removed and tossed across the room. Shizuo descended upon the pale chest, licking and sucking where Izaya was most sensitive.

"_Nnugh_ Shizu-c-chan…_ahh_ Sto-Stop…"

"No." Izaya's heart beat picked up and he couldn't help but be turned on even more by the dominating tone. Izaya lifted his head to look, with glassy, red eyes, into Shizuo's dark ones. Shizuo licked his lips and grasped the back of Izaya's head by the hair and _tugged_. Izaya let out a loud involuntary moan as his neck was attacked at the same time as the left nipple. Shizuo moved to nip and lick at the smooth collar bone as his hand skimmed across gooseflesh skin then disappeared into the black pants.

"_Haaahaa nnnugh._" Izaya ground his hips into the large hand as his body went numb with pleasure.

"You're all wet Izaya," Shizuo teased then marked another spot on Izaya's shoulder with his teeth, "I'm going to make sure everyone knows your mine."

"Shi-Shizu-chan…" Izaya moaned as his body shivered in ecstasy. Shizuo licked the shell of his ear and took the lobe between his teeth.

"Yes?"

"_Nngh,_ hurry up." Izaya wrapped his arms around Shizuo's neck and bucked his hips ignoring the brief pain it caused in both his shoulder and stomach. Shizuo gave a wolfish grin and ripped the jeans from the younger male.

"Ahh, you've ruined your boxers, look they're all wet." Izaya removed his hands from around Shizuo's neck so he could prop himself up to glare at the other man.

"Stop making embarrassing comments." Izaya demanded with a bright, red face. Shizuo licked the wettest part of the boxers earning a lovely surprised sound that seemed to be mixed with a moan of pleasure.

"I'll stop if you quit being so fucking adorable," Shizuo answered before he sealed his lips over the front of the bulge in the boxers. Izaya bit his lip to keep from crying out. His arms trembled from holding him up and he let himself fall backward as the sound of Shizuo's slurping and his own moaning filled the room. Izaya's fingers clenched around Shizuo's hair and his hips bucked upwards begging for more contact. Shizuo frowned and held the slim hips down so he could continue the torturous pressure and pace.

"_Nnggghh, aahh_ more…Shi-Shizu…more…" Full sentences seemed to be out of Izaya's ability. Shizuo gently scrapped his teeth against the bulge before his kissed the warm forehead of the informant and ripped the boxers clean off of Izaya. Shizuo admired the panting, blushing, and _wet_ man beneath him for a moment before he reached into the bottom drawer on Izaya's desk and snatched the bottle planted there, "…when…when did you…" Izaya's brow furled in confusion he hadn't kept lube in that drawer for years.

"Yesterday." Shizuo answered as he popped the cap off and applied a generous amount to both of his hands spreading it like lotion. He thrust one slippery finger inside the puckered hole at the same time that he firmly grabbed the erect member. This action earned a yelp of pleasure and bucked hips. The wince of pain was missed by Shizuo. Instead he added the second finger as he started pumping his hand up and down the long shaft. Izaya withered and moaned as sweat gathered on his forehead. At three fingers he winced and wiggled trying to find comfort aggravating his stomach wound. Shizuo gripped firmer and pumped faster as his fingers stretched and searched. His fingers had only brushed against the bundle of nerves when Izaya screamed and the flesh around Shizuo's fingers began to spasm and tighten before the jet of white seed poured out. Shizuo took that time of euphoria to add in the fourth finger and stretch the younger as well as he could. Effortlessly Shizuo removed his own pants with one hand and slid his own boxers down his agile hips.

"Ready?" Shizuo asked huskily as he removed his fingers and applied the lube to himself.

"W-wait….Shizu-chan wait…just a minute." Izaya panted. The animal in Shizuo growled and took the lead plunging fully into Izaya who let out a silent scream of mixed pain and pleasure. Izaya's slim, right leg was grabbed and thrown over Shizuo's shoulder as he mercilessly pounded in and out of the informant.

"_Nngh…_" Izaya adjusted fairly quickly and with only a slight twinge in his abdomen he met Shizuo's thrusts while wrapping his arms around the blonde for better support. The animal picked up pace and depth as this was seen as an invitation. In too much pleasure to do much other than moan Izaya's finger's clenched into Shizuo's back and scraped forward creating long, red irritants. Shizuo roughly pulled Izaya's head back by the hair so he could bite into the pale flesh, this time drawing blood, marking him once more. Izaya yelped at the sudden pain but it was quickly overridden with the pleasure that Shizuo's rough treatment was providing. Loud moans spilled from both men and Izaya could feel his second climax coming quickly.

"Not yet." Shizuo ordered sensing the incoming release, "Don't cum yet. Hold it." Izaya whined but did as he was told, this Shizuo only wanted complete dominance and Izaya wasn't sure if Shizuo would be able to regain control quickly enough to stop himself from hurting Izaya if he didn't do as he was told. A few more rough pounds had Izaya at his breaking point.

"_Ahh, Nuughh_ Shi-Shizu-chan…please…I need to.._ahh_. Shizu-chan please…" Izaya begged breathlessly. Shizuo released the hair in his right hand and instead grabbed Izaya's throbbing cock.

"Hold it." It was torturous, Izaya decided, to be pumped so slowly and to have to hold himself back. Izaya gasped and threw his head in towards Shizuo's sweaty chest. The pleasure was building so greatly he wasn't sure he was going to hold up. Shizuo shifted his angle and Izaya moaned helplessly as sweat dripped from both of their faces.

"_Shizu-Chan…_ Please! I need to cum…I need. It." Izaya gasped as Shizuo repeatedly slammed into his prostate.

"Okay." With a breathy moan that may or may not have contained part of Shizuo's name in it escaped Izaya's lips as he came over Shizuo's shirt at the same time that Shizuo filled him with a grunt. Shizuo licked the spilled cum off of Izaya's chest as the younger twitched and withered with pleasure. Shizuo wiped his fingers over his ruined shirt and swirled them into Izaya's hot mouth. The fingers were licked clean and Shizuo kissed the younger passionately before pulling out of him. Izaya attempted to sit up but was stopped by the pain in his stomach. With nothing else to distract him from the pain, Izaya froze and slowly laid back on the ground, his right leg still over Shizuo's shoulder. The look of pain killed off the animal that had come out and Shizuo was back to his 'normal' self.

"Shit…Shit damn it Izaya I'm so fucking sorry." Izaya shook his head and cupped the side of Shizuo's face unable to hide the look of pain in his eyes.

"I understand…besides if I really didn't want it I could have fought back you know."

"Not very well," Shizuo pouted as he removed his ruined shirt. Izaya sighed and cupped the elder man's cheek.

"I still could have."

**Hmm I think I will end this chapter here for lack of ideas. I will be back with another chapter later but I have to keep working on problematic Teens too. Sigh you guys are so hard to please.**

**Thanks for reading,**

**Koibito~**


	6. Bukuro's Most Dangerous

**Chapter 6**

**'Bukuro's Most Dangerous**

**I just wanted to apologize for the lateness in this chapter but I feel that the quality of these chapters has been decreasing. I took some time to look through this but I know there's still going to be mistakes. I'm going to see about getting a beta but no promises.**

With a heavy swallow and nervous fingers Kida carefully checked the small sitting room to make sure he was alone before he removed a book from his bookshelf in his apartment. He opened the cover and flipped past the first ten pages, the rest had been cut out into the shape of a large rectangle. With trembling fingers he touched the smooth metal of the gun tucked into the crudely cut crevice. He hadn't carried the weapon for years. The feel of it tucked into the waistband of his jeans and the heavy metal made his skin break out into gooseflesh and his stomach churn with sickness. Sighing he plopped down on a chair with the book on his lap.

Shirozake was right, it was obvious that Kida no longer carried a weapon on him and now that he had taken the position back as the Yellow Scarves leader he was practically defenseless. It was way too easy for Shirozake to overtake him and to get him to agree to his proposition. He was also so weak that he was unable to protect Mikado, the precious being that was sleeping on his couch at that moment. His fist clenched in anger and self-disappointment. He was so useless; he couldn't even protect the one person he had spent so long trying to save. Mikado was such an innocent teenager and Kida had to go and drag him into the mud.

"Damn it." The words were hissed between teeth and Kida clenched a fist so hard it drew blood. He closed the book unable to pick up the gun, and placed it with the other books. Feeling utterly sick, Kida picked up the knife from inside his desk drawer and shoved it in his back pocket. He _hated_ feeling like Orihara but he had learned from watching the man, about knives anyway. He had gotten pretty good at it and had even taken the man by surprise when he pulled it out when he was younger. After he had learned the truth though, he had abandoned the knife in the desk drawer. He would sharpen it later because Mikado would be waking up soon. He refused to bring Mikado in any further than he already was.

Sighing Kida cleaned the blood from his hand and snatched a band-aid from the bathroom cabinet. He then grabbed his school uniform from the couch and put it on. Using the windows in the living room, he made sure his hair was acceptable then, after brushing it back with his fingers twice, he started breakfast for two. He was hoping that by having Mikado stay the night at his place for a while, Shirozake would leave the kid alone. He leaned against the counter as the bread warmed up in the toaster.

"Kida-kun?" Mikado's sleepy voice projected from the other side of the room.

"In the kitchen," Kida called back. It had taken a bit of pressing from him but Mikado had finally relented and allowed Kida to take him back to his apartment. Mikado was sleepily rubbing at an eye as he stumbled into the kitchen making Kida smile warmly at the site, "So cute," he said quietly. Mikado must have heard because he began to blush and he dropped his arm to his side.

"S-So what's for breakfast?"

"Toast," Kida answered as he snagged the toast just as it popped out of the toaster, "I'd offer more but we're running a little short on time." Mikado's eyes glanced to the clock and they widened almost comically as his jaw dropped.

"_Kida_-Kun! We're already an hour _late_!" Mikado raced from the small kitchen and into the bedroom where his uniform was. He quickly put it on, becoming frustrated when he buttoned the under shirt incorrectly and had to redo it. He ran a comb through his hair and was in the middle of brushing his teeth when Kida came in with the toast nicely buttered.

"Chill Mikado, we're late anyway so take your time," Kida said around a mouthful of crunchy bread and butter. The glare that Mikado threw Kida made the elder laugh and clutch at his stomach, "you haven't given me that look in a long time!"

"You should have woken me up two hours ago Kida-kun!" Mikado sounded highly distressed, "I hate being late." He rinsed his mouth and placed his toothbrush next to Kida's on the shelf as the blonde licked his thumb, finishing the slice of toast.

"Hey," Kida's voice deepened and became softer, "it's okay. You needed that rest anyway." He grabbed Mikado's hand and offered a soft smile. Mikado frowned and raised a hand to brush at Kida's face.

"You think you look attractive right now but you've got bread crumbs and butter all over your face." Kida blushed and tried to wipe at his own face but Mikado's thumb was already covering the area. The younger boy sighed as he let his hand fall back to his side, "I guess you're right…I'm just stressed out." Kida's blush disappeared just as quickly as it appeared and he cupped the back of Mikado's head and pushed the anxious teens face to his shoulder.

"It'll be okay. I swear I'll get us out of this mess." Mikado shuddered lightly and gripped at the lapels on Kida's jacket.

"You don't have to do it alone," Mikado said softly, his voice slightly muffled from speaking into the school uniform fabric. Kida stiffened and moved his hands to cup Mikado's face and tilt the boys chin up with the heels of his hands.

"Listen to me. You're not going to get dragged into this anymore than you have to. You're just being used to get me to do something!"

"Kida-kun…"

"No listen. I'm _not_ going to let that dirt bag lay a hand on you! Shirozake _knows_ that if he didn't have anything to hold against me, like _you_, then I wouldn't be doing anything for him!"

"Kida-kun I-"

"I _won't_ let anything happen to you Mikado! I swear I will protect you."

"Masaomi!" The usage of Kida's first name stopped him from repeating himself again, "If that's the case then it's my fault for being a liability. I'll get you out of this mess okay." Kida sputtered for a moment then shook his head.

"That was _not_ what you were supposed to take away from all of that! None of this is your fault and don't you dare say it is!"

"Then none of this is your fault either."

"…" Kida looked at the ground for a moment and his hands dropped to the ground, "Mikado…there's something that you don't know about me…"

"And there are loads of things you don't know about me." Mikado countered while touching his finger to Kida's hand. Kida's golden eyes struggled to rise to meet Mikado's blue ones. The faux blonde knew he had to say something to Mikado…tell him _why_ he knew who Shirozake was and _why_ he had failed to keep in good terms with the man. And it was far more than just costing the man his finger…he had taken his family. But in order to do any of that…he had to tell Mikado his identity as the leader of the Yellow Scarves, a _gang_…a thing that he had _specifically_ told Mikado to stay away from.

"Mikado…I…I need to tell you…" He couldn't bring his eyes up to meet the navy ones, "I..um..I need to tell you that…" Kida was stopped by a hesitant pair of lips that covered his own.

"You don't need to tell me anything until you're sure."

"I am sure!" Kida said his eyes snapping up to the face of the lightly blushing student. Mikado shook his head.

"You aren't…someday though we'll be able to share all of our secrets. I don't think it'll be today." Mikado shyly cupped the side of Kida's face and then tilted his own head to the side looking awfully adorable to the blonde, "Kay!" He said sounding more like there was nothing else to be said on the subject. A slow smile broke out over Kida's face and he covered the pale hand on his cheek with his own.

"Okay."

"Good, now if we hurry we can make it to lunch on time! Sonohara-san is probably wondering where we are!" Mikado snagged Kida's wrist and pulled him in the direction of the small step up area for their shoes. Kida gripped the smaller teens wrist and changed their direction for the kitchen.

"Don't forget that I made you breakfast and our bento's are still in the fridge. I also need to grab my bag…" Kida said with his exuberant energy surrounding him, making his words seem like they were the most exciting plans in the world. Mikado chuckled and allowed himself to be tugged around the apartment three times before he forced Kida towards the door. One train and a twenty minute walk later they arrived just as the bell for lunch rang. The large gates on the campus were of course, already closed so they hopped over them with some difficulty and were soon on the roof for lunch.

"Kida-kun! What happened to your neck?!"

"Ahh, nothing, nothing to be worried about Anri-chan~" Kida did a small dance around his spot on the bench before sitting close to Mikado and pulling out his bento.

"It looks so painful!" The girl exclaimed with a slightly worried look on her normally expressionless face.

"Not at all. Now Mikado!" Kida turned to the boy who was pulling out his own bento, "I made it with my own two hands! That is not only the labor of my friendship but the labor of my _love_! So you have to honestly let me know what you think of my awesome cooking!" Anri grinned into her sandwich, Kida seemed to be acting normally so perhaps it really was okay. She wiggled her legs to be in the center of the small blanket she had brought to protect her from the snow. It seemed that no matter the weather they always came to the roof for lunch.

"…A labor of your love?"

"Yes! Now try it~" The blonde anxiously awaited the reaction as Mikado pulled the chopsticks from their holder and tried some of the food. Instantly his face tightened and he nearly spat the food back out, "Well~?"

"It's terrible," Mikado said with a slight cough.

"So mean!" Kida clutched at his chest, "My heart! Mikado you've killed it with your cruel words!" Mikado rolled his eyes.

"Really Kida-kun where did you learn to cook?" Mikado asked as he wiped his face with a napkin. Kida gripped his clothing and pressed the back of his hand to his forehead.

"Oh! I'm going to faint! Your words, they hurt me Mikado-kun!" Kida cried. The blonde fell backwards and laid across the ground pitifully moaning in emotional pain while shivering in the snow. With a sigh Mikado picked up some of the noodles with his chopsticks and plopped the noodles into Kida's open mouth. The blonde sat up sputtering and spitting.

"Well what do you think?" Mikado asked cutely as Anri bit into her own food with a grin.

"Now you've tried to poison me! Oh Mikado where did I go wrong?"

"I don't know; let me see that recipe and I'll let you know what was completely wrong with it." Mikado answered.

"Recipe? Oh no I just added the things that smelled good!"

"Yeah, that's where you went wrong." Mikado grinned as he offered a hand to help Kida up. Kida grinned and Mikado figured out what the blonde was going to do half a second late. He was snagged by the wrist and pulled down to the cement where he was pinned underneath the blonde. The snow started to melt underneath him and seep into his clothing.

"Now what, Mi-ka-do~?" Kida grinned as he pinned Mikado's hands to the ground. With a grunt Mikado brought his legs up and in one fluid motion pushed Kida over his head and onto the ground by his own head. Kida sat stunned for a moment as Mikado stood and returned to his lunch. The black haired teen hid his grin behind the sandwich that was packed on the lower level of the bento box. It was not nearly as bad as the pasta.

"You should eat your lunch Kida-kun," Mikado said with glittering eyes and mirthful voice.

"How did you do that?" Kida asked in amazement.

"Sheer dumb luck," Mikado answered honestly. Kida laughed loudly and basically sat on Mikado's lap before he picked up his lunch and began to pick through it, making sure to steer clear of the pasta.

"You guys really are close huh?" Anri said as she packed up her empty bento.

"I guess you could say that," Kida said as he waggled his eyebrows at Mikado who blushed and pushed the blondes face away.

"It's just because we're childhood friends…" Mikado said softly. Anri raised an eyebrow and grinned knowingly.

"Really?" She said with a tone of disbelief.

"Y-Yes."

"Well Ryuugamine-kun if you want to stick to that story you should cover up your love bite." She pointed to her own neck and tapped it twice. Mikado inhaled sharply and immediately covered the spot that he thought was hidden.

"Wait! Wait I wanna see it! Did I do a good job Anri-chan? Is it purple or red?" Kida asked as he tried to pry Mikado's hand away from his neck.

"No! Stop! Kida-_kun_!"

"Aha!" Kida yelled as he held both of Mikado's hands away from his neck, "Damn I did an awesome job! …Hey, hey how sensitive is it Mikado?"

"Masaomi! Don't!" Mikado yelled. He was however ignored as the blonde leaned in and licked the spot earning a sharp gasp and a shiver all through Mikado's body.

"Ooooh So _sensitive_." Mikado finally broke free of Kida's hold and he covered the purple hickey.

"Knock it off Masaomi!" Mikado yelped in embarrassment. Anri giggled and she sat in between the two boys as she pulled out a decorated bag.

"I think you're about my color Mikado-kun." She pulled out a bottle of concealer and a sponge. She carefully covered the area, only pausing when Mikado flinched from the sensitivity of the bite, until it was completely covered and blended in.

"Thank you," Mikado said softly as Kida frowned.

"Ahhh Anri-Chan! How could you cover up such a beauty! That's probably the best one I've ever given him!" Mikado instantly flushed and was about to reply when the bell rang signaling the end of lunch.

"I'll meet you guys back in the classroom," Anri said as she walked away.

"Mikado," Kida called softly as the black haired teen turned to pack his uneaten lunch away. Mikado blinked and turned back to Kida who cupped the side of the teens face and kissed him softly gaining a bright blush.

"W-What was that for?" Mikado whispered after Kida pulled away. Kida brushed the soft skin of Mikado's cheek with his thumb.

"I love you." Mikado's face burned red and he was about to reply with the same words when Kida's hand slid from his cheek and wiped at his neck, _hard_.

"Masa_omi_ you did not just do what I think you did!" Kida held up his hand which was now covered in pale make-up. Mikado covered the mark with his hand then he tried to fix the collar of his shirt as Kida grabbed his things and ran off laughing like a madman. Mikado managed to cover the mark without looking completely ridiculous and barely made it into his seat before the bell rang. He threw a glare at Kida and the blonde pretended not to see. Halfway through the class it started to snow again and Mikado stared at that instead of listening to the lecture. He nearly jumped out of his seat when his arm was poked and he was handed a note. The girl that discreetly handed it to him pointed to Kida and the blonde blew him a not-so-discreet kiss. With a light blush Mikado opened the note only to find a very detailed picture of himself with Masaomi, _naked_ and in bed. It appeared that they were cuddling…and sweaty. Mikado closed the note and proceeded to ignore Masaomi in fear of a raging blush and tell-tale tenting. It was a blessing when class ended and they were able to leave the school.

"Mi-Ka~do~!" Kida sang as they exited the school building after cleaning. They ignored the normal school activities that they normally did in favor of escaping the rapidly falling snow.

"Kida-kun! Don't!" Mikado protested as Kida pulled on the collar of his shirt trying to show off the love bite.

"Did you like my note?" The blonde waggled his eyes suggestively. Mikado instantly blushed and crushed the urge to reach for his pocket to make sure the explicit note was still there.

"It wasn't school appropriate," was all Mikado could think of to say. Kida laughed so hard that he started coughing again and Mikado frowned worried, "Let me see your neck Kida-kun."

"Only if you let me see yours," Kida's voice was hoarse but he was still waggling his eyebrows and had that dangerously suggestive look in his eye. Mikado blushed and dogged as Kida tried to pull down the collar of his shirt again.

"Kida-kun!" Mikado protested loudly before doing a quick three step to the side only to crash into another person. Mikado instantly fell into an apologetic bow and he apologized quickly.

"Oh it's you…" Mikado looked up to see the blonde haired man dressed as a bartender. Mikado glanced around to search for the informant that was normally with the man but failed to see him, "He's at the apartment." The ex-bartender answered knowing who the teen was searching for. He adjusted the paper bags in his hands.

"I'm sorry for bumping into you!" Mikado said quickly hoping that the man had some patience that day. The man skillfully blew cigarette smoke out of the side of his mouth then inhaled another drag.

"No problem…hey you're supposed to get those stitches out aren't you?"

"Oh," Mikado said while touching the back of his head, "I guess I forgot to call Kishitani-san." Mikado answered as Kida moved to stand beside the student.

"Well come on then, I'll call him over and we can have him take a look at both of ya."

"No tha-," Kida started but was cut off by Mikado who was all too willing to get another meeting with Izaya.

"Of course! Lead the way!" Shizuo blinked slightly confused at the conflicting answers but shrugged and started walking again leaving it to the teens to decide if they wanted to follow or not. Mikado skillfully avoided the curious gazes Kida was sending him as the black haired teen tried to discreetly pull his shirt collar up.

"You two should be wearing coats in this weather you know," Shizuo said after the silence became awkward.

"You're one to talk," Kida muttered. Shizuo gave him a quick, annoyed glare but let the comment slide.

"Ahh, we weren't expecting snow today," Mikado said with a smile even though the tall blonde couldn't see it.

"You were too busy to watch the news then?" Mikado almost missed the amused tone when he noticed the side glance at his neck. With a red face Mikado clapped a hand over his poorly concealed hickey and he glared at a smirking Kida.

"No! We didn't do that!" Shizuo was grinning openly at the teen's frazzled response. The poor kid tried to get out a sentence but was cut off from another attempt by his blonde counterpart.

"Why are we going to the train station?"

"Ahh, the apartments in Shibuya," Shizuo answered.

"…You came to Ikebukuro to do your shopping?" Kida asked with a raised eyebrow while Mikado tried his hardest to cease his blushing.

"I had other business here to do," Shizuo answered shortly. He had only worked a few hours with Tom, who had been way to inquisitive about his time off, before he left and did Izaya's shopping. He had been calling every five minutes to make sure the flea was okay before he ran into the two high school students. They bought their tickets and as they were waiting for the train Shizuo pulled out his phone again and called Izaya.

"Hey tell Shinra to stay there for a bit. I have those kids with me."

"We aren't _kids_," Kida balked annoyed.

"…Yeah….Okay…Are you still doing good? Because I'm worried that's why I'm asking…Shut up ya damn louse…I'm getting on the train now…yeah…okay bye." Shizuo snapped his phone shut as the train slowed to a stop in front of them and people started flowing out. They elbowed their way into the train and stood towards the back of the car. Roughly fifteen minutes later they were exiting the Shibuya station and Shizuo was once again on the phone with Izaya making sure that everything was still good.

"Why did you accept his offer?" Kida asked quietly.

"…I figured we should do as that man asked…" Mikado answered just as quietly while Shizuo seemed to get annoyed with whatever the other man was saying.

"…I guess you're right but I wish you wouldn't drag yourself into this…"

"He told me to get involved too. I doubt he'd take it well if only you did this. Besides I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I just let you do all the work," Mikado answered. Kida slipped his hand into Mikado's and sighed softly.

"Sorry I keep dragging you into my shit," Mikado frowned and, before he lost his nerve, kissed Kida's cheek then looked forward like he hadn't done anything.

"I don't mind," Mikado said softly as Shizuo hung up.

"Did you say somethin'?" Shizuo asked.

"Kida-Kun! You're so cold!" Mikado exclaimed while clutching the teens hand in both of his. It wasn't just a distraction technique Kida was actually shivering at this point. Shizuo snorted and pulled a jacket from one of his shopping bags and draped it over Kida's head. It nearly dragged on the ground.

"I told you, you should be wearing a fucking coat in this weather," Shizuo said as the wind picked up and snow blew in their faces.

"…Thanks." Kida said softly avoiding all eye contact with Shizuo when the man nodded in acceptance. Kida opened the coat to Mikado who declined.

"I'm warm enough just holding your hand," Mikado answered as his grip tightened on Kida's hand, "you use it." Kida nodded, he would have forced the coat upon Mikado but the teen wasn't even shivering and his hand was pretty warm even though snow was melting on the boys eyelashes then refreezing in the cold wind. Ten minutes later they arrived at Izaya's building and Mikado's eyes flickered over to where he thought he saw movement. They were being watched. He could only assume it was by the man that had carried Kida's unconscious body to his apartment and made his demands. He said nothing to either Kida or Shizuo. Only once they entered the elevator did Mikado feel slightly relaxed.

"Um, thanks for letting me use this," Kida seemed nervous again as he handed the coat back to Shizuo. The man the grunted and shoved the coat back into the shopping bag. Mikado frowned in confusion, it didn't seem like Kida was nervous because of Shizuo's presence more like he was concerned with the man they were _going _to be meeting. Kida was _scared_ of Izaya. The realization made Mikado's stomach churn and he couldn't help but wonder why. It seemed like there was something in their past but he had only just moved to Ikebukuro and Kida was _not_ going to spill anything about Orihara. As Shizuo pulled the apartment keys from his pocket one of his shopping bags fell and Mikado quickly lunged to catch it. Shizuo blinked at the teens quick reflexes but said nothing except,

"Are the eggs broken?"

"Um, I don't think so," Mikado replied as he tentatively looked in the bag.

"Good." Shizuo unlocked the apartment and as soon as they stepped in Mikado could feel the eyes that couldn't be seen watching them. Someone was keeping close tabs on them and it didn't seem to be a good thing.

"Ahh Shizuo! Finally would you talk some sense into him?!" Shinra came barreling around the corner as Shizuo toed his shoes off in the genkan, "He needs to be _resting_ not working!" Shizuo peered around the corner of the small wall separating the genkan from the rest of the apartment then let out a frustrated huff of air. He shoved his grocery bags onto Mikado and Kida.

"Take those to the kitchen will ya." Shizuo crushed his third cigarette in his hand and dumped it in the ash tray by the door. The two boys glanced at each other before removing their own shoes and walking into the large apartment. They heard an indignant squawk from Izaya and looked over in time to see Shizuo carrying him by the back of a black pullover hoodie to the living room.

"Ow! Ow Shizu-Chan you're hurting me!" Izaya yelped as he was placed, none too gently, onto the couch and held down so Shinra could finish his job, "you damn brute! _Fuck_ Shinra that _hurts_."

"If you would just hold still I wouldn't miss!"

"The _fuck_ is _that_?!" Mikado and Kida carefully made their way into the kitchen and Mikado went about putting the refrigerated and frozen items away so they would stay fresh. They shuffled nervously as the informant gave a few more yelps then went silent.

"They killed him," Kida whispered darkly in Mikado's ear making the younger jump.

"Ki-Kida-kun! Don't say that!" Mikado gasped. They carefully made their way into the living room where Shizuo was sitting on the couch with Izaya's arms held together in one of Shizuo's hands and pulled to rest on the fabric of the ex-bartenders shoulder. The informant had his eyes screwed shut and was biting his lower lip as Shinra carefully applied some sort of medication to the wound in his abdomen and right shoulder. The medic wrapped the wounds snugly and removed his gloves. He then gave the man a shot of something that did not look pleasant to receive.

"There, now we could have been done with that an hour ago if you would have just cooperated," Shinra said proudly as he removed his gloves and properly disposed of them.

"Fuck. You." Izaya panted.

"Well if you hadn't of reopened your wounds I wouldn't have had to do any of that." The doctor looked slightly peeved and slightly upset, like he had figured out why the wounds had come open but was uncomfortable about it.

"I ran into that kid today, you said you wanted to take those stitches out no?" Shizuo asked as he released Izaya's wrists and reached into the pocket of his pants and returned the informants beloved flick knife to him.

"I noticed!" Shinra exclaimed happily. He looked to Mikado, "I got a little worried when you hadn't called me back. I'm a bit of a secret to hospitals and law enforcement so I'd appreciate some secrecy."

"Oh, yes of course! I'd just forgotten about it…" Mikado said. It had been a blur after he had woken up with Kida the day after the stitches were put in. Kida had convinced him to go stay at the blondes place for the weekend and suddenly a week passed and it was Friday again.

"We tried your place but you weren't in…" Shinra looked a little worried as he gestured for the teen to sit on the floor.

"Ah, I was staying with Kida-kun."

"Looks like you two were busy," Izaya commented sounding far more composed than he looked as he tapped lightly on his neck while giving Mikado and Kida a suggestive look. Mikado instantly blushed and Kida glared at Izaya as if to tell him to back off.

"Why does everyone think that?!" Mikado groaned as he cupped the side of his neck. He winced slightly as he felt a slight tug on the back of his head. Shinra chuckled but as soon as he noticed movement from the couch his good mood evaporated and he glared at the informant who was trying to sit up.

"Don't move or I'll have Shizuo hold you down again," Shinra ordered in his best doctor voice. Izaya contemplated his choices before he settled back onto the couch with a slight glare. Shinra's warm personality flicked back on and he inspected the healing wound on Mikado's head before he pulled a syringe and a small bottle full of a clear liquid from his black bag.

"What's that?" Kida asked feeling antsy as the doctor sucked some of the liquid into the syringe.

"An antibiotic, your showing just a touch of bacterial growth and I just want to make sure it's dead before you get sick from it," Shinra said more to Mikado than Kida. Mikado nodded and allowed his arm to be cleaned off before flinching away from the needle. Shinra was unfazed and successfully administered the antibiotic. He cotton balled and band-aided the small prick. He then put the used needle in a plastic case and grabbed a cotton ball and a bottle of something similar to Hydrogen Peroxide. Mikado tensed and clenched his fists as the alcohol burned his skin and made the back of his head tingle unpleasantly.

"Ow…" The teen muttered under his breath.

"I'm just going to wrap it so no other bacteria can get in as easily. Just make sure you're careful with what you get in your hair and be sure to wash this spot out even if it stings a bit," Shinra advised.

"Okay, thank you." Mikado stood and pushed Kida over at the doctor's request. The teen removed his school jacket and sweater obediently but still tensed up when Shinra poked and prodded the area.

"This looks a lot better but you've still got to be careful and keep rotating some cold compresses on this before bed for about an hour," Shinra said while carefully lifting Kida's arm to see how high it could go before the teen winced. He moved on to gently feel the front of Kida's neck. His fingers moved smoothly over and around the Adams apple and up to his chin then back down to his collar bone, "Don't do anything that could potentially injure your neck, I'll have to give you a note to get out of gym class. Any extra pressure on it and you could be worse off than you started. Everything is still pretty weak and I'm assuming sore."

"Yeah, It still hurts me," Kida answered lowly feeling far too exposed in only his T-shirt. Shinra dug around in his bag and produced a small bottle of pills and handed them to the teen.

"Take two in the morning and if you're still in pain you can take two more at night as well," Shinra said then wrote messily on a piece of paper that would excuse Kida from doing anything too strenuous in gym class, "Don't do anything that makes you breathe heavy or could cause you to go into a bad coughing fit you'll worsen everything." Shinra cautioned.

"Thank you," Kida said as he put his layers back on and moved to stand next to Mikado again. It was then that he realized that Izaya had fallen asleep with his head resting on Shizuo's lap and the bodyguard's fingers running through his hair. It was strange to see the man that had caused him so much grief with his guard down so low that he was sleeping in other people's presence.

"Oh! The sedative worked!" Shinra exclaimed happily. Kida shrugged, that would do it.

"Why don't you all stay for dinner," Shizuo offered. Shinra declined with a shake of his head.

"That's okay Celty's coming so I'll be okay. We're going to try and make up that date night tonight. I'm sure these boys would love to stay for a while though! It seems like they'll have to with this blizzard that's going on." Shinra said while pointing to the large windows which were completely white with the snow falling.

"Wait, what about you? You can't possibly expect to be able to drive in this or even get a train!" Mikado exclaimed as he looked out the window with slight horror. Everything would be shutting down with this amount of snow.

"It's okay, I've got a special kind of ride." Shinra added a wink as his cell phone went off. He looked at it just as a horses neigh was heard, "Ah Celty's here." Mikado looked out of the window and his eyes nearly popped out of his head when he caught a glimpse of the Black Biker between the sheets of snow and ice. The doctor left and the situation began to dawn on Kida. It was supposed to snow all weekend and possibly get even worse. They were going to be stuck in this apartment until the storm let up. Kida would have to deal with Ikebukuro's worst while trying to protect Mikado.

"Fuck."


	7. A peak into his past

**Chapter 7**

Shirozake crept along the sides of the street hidden by shadows and the thickly falling snow. He couldn't believe his luck when he saw the two boys he was blackmailing following Heiwajima of all people. He frowned slightly when he realized that Izaya was not in the mix and a homicide could not be attempted but at least he could see what their relationship was at this point. He pulled his coat around him tighter when the wind started to blow and a curious grin spread across his face when he noticed that the black haired boy seemed to notice his eyes on them. Yet the boy had not discovered Shirozake's hiding place.

Nearly chuckling with excitement, Shirozake followed them to the apartment complex that Izaya was holed up in. He could see the lights in the penthouse on yet he couldn't see in the room. Shirozake entered the building across the street and managed to get to the top floor without arousing suspicion. He made it in time to see a meek looking brown haired man giving Orihara an injection. The man was still clearly injured and if Shirozake could just catch him outside of that damn apartment he could take him down. He would have to plan carefully; he would have to be able to hit Orihara with a bullet from several meters away to avoid Heiwajima's temper and fists.

The brown haired man looked like he was chastising Orihara before turning his attention to the black haired boy that still seemed to notice that someone was watching. He was an interesting child, Shirozake decided, one that deserved attention. However this brown haired man was not someone that Shirozake was acquainted with and he wasn't sure what to think about him. Upon watching their reactions more closely, he came to the conclusion that this man was a friend of both Orihara and Heiwajima. It looked like the man was excusing himself, although it was hard to tell with the way the snow and wind had picked up. Making his way down to the first floor Shirozake was able to get a better look at the man as he was leaving the apartment complex. The man was ballsy; he gave him that, going out in this weather to try and catch a train back was probably impossible. Shirozake didn't believe in giving up opportunities though, he was going to talk to the man to find out who he was. He took one step outside of the building and noticed the Black Biker of all beings was waiting outside Orihara's apartment complex. It waved over to the mousy brown haired man and he hurried over and placed a black helmet, that appeared seemingly out of nowhere on his head then mounted the bike and wrapped his arms around the riders waist. Things were getting interesting, Shirozake thought as he retreated unable to take on the legendary Black Biker. This man was a friend of Orihara, Heiwajima, and not to mention the Black Biker. He was going to be a very interesting subject later.

* * *

Frowning, Izaya sat up and surveyed his surroundings. He was in his room, probably brought there by Shizuo who betrayed him by assisting Shinra with that dreaded sedative disguised as an antibiotic. Izaya wasn't dumb he knew that the bottles were color coordinated and as soon as Shinra had said that Mikado's was an antibiotic he knew that the liquid from the white rimmed bottle that had been used on _him,_ was much different from the liquid in the blue rimmed bottle that the boy had received. His suspicions were confirmed when he couldn't lift an arm to swat at Shizuo or keep his burning eyes open moments later.

Sighing Izaya rubbed his face and carefully sat up wincing at the tug in his wounds. They were looking significantly better, still bleeding when he accidentally pulled them open or when Shizuo was accidentally a little rough with him, but still looking better. The faux blonde still had a temper on him even when he wasn't pretending to hate Izaya's guts. Izaya had gone a little too far in his teasing lately but lucky for him Shizuo mostly stormed out onto the side balcony to smoke and smoke until Izaya came out and snatched the sticks away from him and finished off the one that Shizuo was working on.

If he went downstairs now would he find Shizuo brooding on the couch? Cooking dinner? Would he be angry or just worried? Perhaps he wouldn't even be there. Earlier in the day Izaya had gone way too far with his poking and teasing and Shizuo suddenly stated that he was going to work and that Izaya had better get over himself by the time he returned. When the blonde called five minutes after he left Izaya thought it was to say that he was coming back for Izaya and that he had better be ready to go. Instead he was checking in, stating that even though he needed to get out of the apartment he was still going to make sure that Izaya was okay.

The unexpected rush of emotion that Izaya had experienced at that moment suddenly came back with force. He suddenly needed to see Shizuo and possibly follow the man. He wasn't going to lie to himself, maybe to Shizuo if he asked, but not to himself because he _was_ worried when Shizuo left, he figured someone was going to attack the blonde. Yet, Shizuo dutifully called every five minutes reporting no problems on his end and how was Izaya?

Izaya struggled to his feet and managed to stand despite the after effects of the drug, one of them he was sure was this overwhelming emotion he was feeling. This was not something that would be considered normal for him. On wobbly legs he made his way into the bathroom, after all first things came first. Once that pressing matter was out of the way Izaya fought the drug again and, while gripping the railing on the stairs like it was a life line, he started his decent.

He paused halfway down the stair case when he realized there were other people in his apartment. It sounded as if…yes, that was Kida Masaomi speaking in a rather enthusiastic voice about something he had done with, or to, Mikado-kun. The black haired boy's voice carried along with it, urgently trying to quiet the younger (1) boy. Izaya frowned unhappily when Shizuo laughed, loudly, as Masaomi finished his tale.

"That reminds me of the time when Izaya," Shizuo started. It was all Izaya needed to hear before he knew that he needed to stop Shizuo from telling this story at whatever cost. He needed a distraction! He looked at the remainder of the stairs, it wouldn't be hard to blame a fall on the medication…but he didn't want to look so weak to Masaomi and the infamous Dollars leader. Instead Izaya sat and leaned against the railing, still out of sight of everyone downstairs.

"Shi-Shizu-chan!" He called making his voice sound as if he were out of breath. Instantly Shizuo's story stopped and he excused himself from the living room. Izaya clutched the support railing just as Shizuo's head poked around the corner.

"What are you doing out of bed?"

"Needed some water," Izaya said quietly as Shizuo ascended the stairs.

"You should have just called from your room," the blonde chuckled and offered a hand to help the informant up. Izaya took it and when Shizuo pulled a little too hard Izaya clutched the hand tighter in fear of a fall but was caught around the waist and against Shizuo's chest. Taking the situation to his advantage, Izaya leaned up and placed his lips by Shizuo's ear.

"Information on me doesn't get sold to others Shizu-chan," the black haired man patted the ex-bartender on the cheek before leaning away. Shizuo was blushing lightly but other than that he didn't look ashamed of what he had been about to say. Instead of commenting on it the blonde cleared his throat and changed the subject.

"You shouldn't be fighting off the drugs like this you know…"

"It's Shinra's damn fault for giving me a sedative anyway." Shizuo sighed and gripped Izaya around the waist, helping him down the stairs.

"It's your own fault for not obeying the doctor's orders to stay off those damn computers and sleep. That's what injured people do you know, sleep and rest, they drink lots of juice and all that crap." Shizuo released Izaya before they were seen by the two teens sitting in the living room, saving Izaya his dignity. Shizuo pointed firmly to the couch and Izaya gave a playful shrug before going off in that direction while Shizuo went to the kitchen for a glass of water. Izaya tried not to show how unhappy he was that he couldn't stick to Shizuo's side like he had intended to before, as he sat gingerly on the couch with a grin.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Izaya greeted the two high schooler's, one scowling and the other straight faced but both holding hands.

"Thank you," Mikado said when it became clear that Kida wasn't going to say anything, "Although we've been here for a few hours."

"Oh you wanted to see me that badly? I'm honored."

"No, there's a storm going on," Kida said still scowling, "Trust me, we'll be out of your hair as soon as the trains are back in business."

"Oh, Masaomi-kun, you're hurting my feelings," Izaya grinned while placing a hand over his heart.

"What feelings?" Kida muttered while looking away his grip on Mikado's hand tightened. Mikado glanced worried at Masaomi; his hand had suddenly become sweaty. Was he truly that nervous about being around Izaya?

"How rude of you, to insinuate that I don't have feelings Masaomi-kun! After all I did take such good care of you as a-,"

"Shut up! Just SHUT UP!" Kida yelled standing suddenly, his grip on Mikado's hand tightening. Shizuo walked into the room as Izaya's hand twitched toward his knife, just in case.

"Masaomi…" Mikado mumbled.

"Izaya," Shizuo warned at the same time. Izaya grinned and crossed his legs; he then held his hands up in surrender taking them away from his pockets.

"Yes dear?" He answered without taking his eyes off of Masaomi.

"Be nice." Shizuo demanded as he pressed a glass of water into the informants hand, "Or else." Izaya's grin grew and his eyes flickered over to Shizuo.

"Or else, _what_?" Shizuo leaned down next to Izaya's ear and whispered a few choice words that had the grin on Izaya's face slowly disappearing and his gaze flickered to the bookshelf for half a second before returning to Shizuo's face.

"That's what," Shizuo finished.

"…Shizu-Chan plays dirty~" Izaya smirked before taking a sip of the water.

"Apologize," Shizuo ordered.

"Shizu-_chan_~" Izaya pouted trying to get his way and failing.

"Do it."

"It's fine!" Kida said suddenly, "I don't need his apologies." Mikado glanced up at Masaomi, worried. Shizuo shrugged and sat down again, the air became awkward.

"Pardon us for a moment, but I need to talk to Masaomi!" Mikado suddenly blurted out.

"Yeah sure, go ahead," Shizuo said, "I need to talk to this flea anyway." Mikado stood and tugged a protesting Masaomi away and into the kitchen.

"Yes Shizu-chan?" Izaya batted his eyelashes while sipping on the water.

"I don't know what you did to that kid, but seriously can't you leave him alone?"

"Well where's the fun in that? He's so easy to provoke!"

"Izaya, he's hurting…I don't know why but it's so obvious in his eyes."

"Yes I suppose he would be."

"Again I don't know what you did to him, and no I don't _want_ to know," Shizuo said with closed eyes with Izaya opened his mouth, "But lay off of him, he's just a kid."

"Oh you like Masaomi-kun?" Izaya took advantage of their solitude by laying his head on Shizuo's side.

"He's a good kid."

"What makes you say that?" Izaya asked while tucking his legs up to his thighs.

"He's trying so hard to protect that boy. Someone who tries that hard has got to be a good kid."

"Oh? And if I told you he was trying to hide his secrets from the same boy? And if those secrets would possibly make Mikado-kun hate him?" Izaya asked.

"Everyone has secrets Izaya." Izaya frowned, it wasn't the answer he was expecting. Damn this man for being so unpredictable.

"Even you?"

"Even me." Again it wasn't what Izaya was expecting. He looked up to Shizuo a frown on his face and in his eyes, "Don't make that face Izaya, you have secrets too."

"Secrets I don't tell you because you don't want to know, or they could potentially put your life in danger," Izaya said.

"Yes, and I keep my secrets secret because you are already stressed out enough. You don't need to add anything else to that plate," Shizuo said while placing his hand on Izaya's cheek.

"I'm not stressed," Izaya countered.

"You're a damn terrible liar," Shizuo said with a laugh. He gave the informant a chaste kiss then took the still full glass of water from Izaya's hand, "So what did you really come down here for? Not water I'm sure." Shizuo gently sloshed the water in the glass.

"It's a secret," Izaya said while rubbing his nose against Shizuo's neck.

"Weirdo," Shizuo mumbled but wrapped an arm around the informants shoulders anyway.

* * *

"Masaomi-,"

"Mikado, I _don't_ want to talk about it," Masaomi said while looking anywhere but at Mikado.

"Well I do."

"There's nothing to-,"

"You're scared of Orihara-san aren't you?" While phrased as a questions Mikado said it as a fact. Masaomi's mouth snapped shut.

"…"

"I thought so…What did he do?" Mikado asked while trying to get into Masaomi's line of sight.

"…"

"Masaomi…" Mikado was starting to get frustrated with the worried eyes he was not receiving and the slight tremble in Masaomi's frame.

"I-I told you Mikado, I don't want to talk about it."

"Well if we're supposed to be getting close to him then I need to know!" Mikado's voice was still low but the frustration in it could be heard very well.

"…Mikado, don't…" Anger took over and Mikado's gang persona came forward. He took Masaomi by the shoulders and pressed him roughly against the wall, "Mi-Mikado!"

"Tell me!" Mikado ordered his eyes cold and firm. Masaomi blinked in shock at this complete change in character, "or I'll just go get the story from Orihara-san myself." When Masaomi hesitated Mikado released him and turned to walk out of the kitchen.

"Wait! You aren't serious are you?" Masaomi grabbed Mikado's shoulder and turned him back around.

"Dead serious," Mikado answered with his hand on the wall. Kida shifted uncomfortably.

"There's no easy way to say it…I used to get tons of information from Izaya."

"What about?" Kida flinched at the question. He knew it was coming there was no way that Mikado wouldn't ask, but he was _not_ prepared to answer it at all. He had been telling Mikado from day one to stay away from gangs and anyone associated with them, what would Mikado do when he found out? If he found out?

"Mikado…I…I can't…answer that yet…" He was far too scared to tell Mikado, because really what was he other than a wimp and terrified?

"…then tell me why you're so scared of Orihara-san."

"Like I said I used to get tons of information from him and I became entirely dependent on him…it was all a part of his plan and I didn't see it until it was way too late," Kida slid down the wall and brought his knees to his chest. Mikado slowly reverted back to his regular self, the gang persona going away as Kida started to talk more.

"Okay…"

"I couldn't do anything on my own, I was too scared to, I thought I would fail. I went to him before I ever did _anything_. Before you got here I dated a girl, Saki, and…and she was taken. I knew where she was but I didn't know what to _do._ For…specific reasons I _couldn't_ go to the police. So I called Izaya…I called him for hours. Not once did he pick up that phone or answer emails. I know he had his phone on him that whole time. He was literally ignoring my calls. He knew what was going on, after all he's the one that set it up."

"Her kidnapping?"

"Yeah, he gets this sadistic pleasure from watching other people suffer and he was having a ball watching my calls come in every few seconds. I'm sure he was laughing and at one point I decided I was just going to go and I was literally in the alley way to where she was. I froze, I was so scared, I could _hear_ her screaming and I just…I didn't know what to do. I called him again and he still didn't pick up. They killed her Mikado (2), and I just stood there and listened to her die while calling and calling." Fat tears rolled from Masaomi's eyes and he gripped his hair nearly pulling some of it out.

"…"

"I couldn't even go in after they were done…I…I ran…I went home and I saw it on the news…what they had done. It was then that Izaya called me saying that he was sorry he missed my calls but was preoccupied that night. I was so pissed, I told him I would kill him and he just laughed. I hung up…I can't…" Masaomi hiccupped, "I _can't_ trust him Mikado. What if I end up losing you too?!" Mikado swallowed thickly, his stomach churning violently. He wrapped his arms around Masaomi's trembling frame feeling horribly guilty. He forced Masaomi to stay something so _awful_ and they weren't even in the privacy of their own _home_ to work things out.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry Masaomi," Mikado apologized his voice trembling, "I shouldn't of made you say it…I'm sorry. You won't lose me, I promise." Masaomi's fingers untangled from his hair and gripped the front of Mikado's shirt instead.

"I swear," Masaomi was looking determined as he stared with liquid gold eyes into Mikado's navy ones, so determined that Mikado instantly stopped his apologies to listen, "I _swear_ I will protect you Mikado. _No one_ will touch you; I swear my life on it!" Mikado's eyes watered and he weakly smacked the side of Masaomi's face.

"Moron. Don't swear your life on something like that," Mikado said, he continued before Masaomi could protest, "I'll protect _you,_ idiot." Masaomi wiped his face and lightly punched Mikado's shoulder.

"What makes you think that you can protect me, crybaby," Masaomi was clearly trying to tease him from their days in their hometown, but with those dried tear tracks and with a face as red as the one Masaomi was currently wearing, it just made Mikado laugh.

"Who's the crybaby here?!" Masaomi offered a grin but internally he was worried that Mikado might think differently of him at this point.

"You of course," Masaomi said while extending a hand and wiping away the tears that were falling, unnoticed, from Mikado's eyes.

"Naturally," Mikado answered.

"Yeah…"

**(1)It seems that I have made a mistake in Mikado and Masaomi's ages, Mikado was born in March and Kida in June in the same year…I was totally off there so pardon previous chapters which have Kida marked as older.**

**(2)Okay I know that Saki just had her legs broken but for this plot I had to kill her. To all you Saki lovers, my apologies but I did what needed to be done.**


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